Airbus : Air travel in India and overseas is expected to be disrupted this weekend as thousands of Airbus A320 family aircraft are grounded for a mandated software update. Airlines throughout the world are expected to finish the upgrade by early next week.
In India, more than 350 A320-series planes operated by IndiGo and the Air India Group will be temporarily grounded for the two to three-day exercise. Operations are likely to resume by December 1 or 2.
Airbus : Triggered by a US incident
The action comes after a safety investigation of a JetBlue A320 flight that experienced a rapid pitch-down on October 30 while flying from Cancun to Newark. The National Transportation Safety Board has linked the abrupt descent to a switching event in the aircraft’s flight control system, requiring regulators and manufacturers to take corrective action.
After the plane diverted to Tampa, some of its passengers required medical assistance.
Older aircraft will take more time.
Approximately 6,000 aircraft worldwide will require the update. Newer A320 aircraft should be updated within 30 minutes using software loading tools, however older jets may require additional hardware upgrades, potentially increasing downtime.
Regulators issue worldwide directives.
The European Union Aviation Safety Agency has issued an emergency airworthiness regulation, urging operators worldwide to execute the A320 software and hardware upgrade as soon as possible. It has warned that the mandate may disrupt flight schedules and annoy passengers, but that safety remains the top priority.
IndiGo, which has around 350 A320 family aircraft in its fleet, is anticipated to finish maintenance on approximately 250 of them by early next week, according to a TOI article. Air India, which operates a fleet of approximately 120-125 A320 versions, estimates a similar schedule for the more than 100 aircraft involved.
Air India announced on Saturday that the measures will result in higher turnaround times and delays until the update is completed across its fleet, and it apologized for the inconvenience to passengers.
Solar radiation danger was detected.
Airbus recognized the corrective step, adding that an investigation into a recent A320 incident revealed that high sun radiation could destroy data important to flight control systems. The aircraft manufacturer collaborated with global regulators to initiate preventive measures via an alert operator communication, which has now been codified under the emergency directive.
The EASA notification states that an A320 recently experienced a brief, uncommanded pitch-down while the autopilot was still engaged. Airbus has discovered a problem in one of the flight control systems as a possible contributing factor, warning that if not rectified, such conditions could result in risky aircraft movements.
Airbus expressed sorrow for any operational interruption and stated that it is working closely with airlines to expedite the updates while prioritising flight safety.
