NEW DELHI: Air travel across India and the globe is set to face significant disruptions following a technical directive from Airbus, calling for an immediate software upgrade on its A320-family aircraft. In India, over 350 A320 planes operated by IndiGo and Air India will be grounded for the next two to three days while the update is implemented. Full operations are expected to resume by Monday or Tuesday. Globally, approximately 6,000 A320 aircraft could be affected, a major disruption considering Airbus and its competitor Boeing together control over 75% of the world’s commercial aircraft fleet.
Here are 10 things to know about the Airbus A320 recall:
- Global Impact: Airbus has ordered an urgent software update for around 6,000 A320-family aircraft, which could affect more than half of the global fleet. The recall is expected to cause significant disruption, particularly in the U.S., coinciding with one of the busiest travel weekends of the year.
- Cause of the Issue: The directive follows a recent incident involving an A320 aircraft, which revealed a potential risk related to “intense solar radiation.” This radiation could corrupt crucial data for the aircraft’s flight-control systems, leading to the need for the software fix.
- Air India’s Response: Air India has acknowledged the directive and confirmed that its fleet of A320-family aircraft is affected. The airline noted that the update would require a “software/hardware realignment” and warned passengers of potential “longer turnaround times and delays” during the process.
- IndiGo’s Compliance: IndiGo, which operates one of the largest A320 fleets in India, has also confirmed compliance with the directive. The airline emphasized its commitment to safety and assured passengers that the updates would be carried out with “full diligence and care.” Schedule changes are possible as the upgrades take place.
- Fleet Composition: IndiGo, with more than 350 A320-family aircraft, is expected to complete updates on around 250 planes by Monday or Tuesday. Air India, which operates around 120–125 A320 aircraft, plans to complete updates on over 100 planes within the same timeframe.
- Massive Recall: The scale of this recall is significant, potentially one of the largest in Airbus’s 55-year history. The timing is particularly notable as the A320 recently surpassed Boeing’s 737 as the world’s most-delivered aircraft model.
- Simple Repair Process: The repair itself is relatively simple, mostly involving a rollback to a previous software version. However, airlines must complete this process before the planes can return to passenger service, except for repositioning flights to repair centers.
- Widespread Delays and Cancellations: Airlines around the world—especially in North America, South America, Europe, India, and New Zealand—are warning of potential delays and cancellations due to the repairs. American Airlines, the largest A320 operator globally, expects to update about 340 of its 480 A320s, with each fix taking around two hours.
- Other Affected Airlines: In addition to IndiGo and Air India, other major airlines like Lufthansa, easyJet, and JetBlue are also planning brief groundings to perform the updates. In South America, Avianca has confirmed that more than 70% of its fleet is affected, forcing the carrier to temporarily halt ticket sales for certain dates until December 8.
- JetBlue Incident Sparks Review: The software update directive follows an incident involving a JetBlue A320, which led to discussions among safety regulators and prompted a thorough review of the A320 fleet’s software configuration. While details are still emerging, this incident is believed to have contributed to Airbus issuing the global recall for immediate corrective action.
This software issue comes at a challenging time for the aviation industry, which is already grappling with heavy workloads at repair facilities, delays from engine-related inspections, and labor shortages. These factors are likely to add further strain to already busy flight schedules.
