Airbus said a ‘significant number’ of their A320 planes had been impacted by a software issueThis article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it. Learn more
Liverpool John Lennon Airport(Image: Mirrorpix)
Thousands of flights have been disrupted worldwide after planes were grounded by a software problem. As many as 6,000 Airbus planes may have been affected by the error, resulting in cancellations on a number of UK airlines, including Wizz Air, EasyJet and Jet2.
Meanwhile in the USA, American Airlines has seen more than 300 planes grounded over the Thanksgiving period when six million travel home to be with their families.
It is believed the problem was discovered after an incident in October when a flight from Cancun, Mexico, to Newark in New Jersey suffered a sharp loss of altitude. The JetBlue plane dropped 100 ft in just seven seconds, leaving 15 people injured including children. It had to carry out an emergency landing in Florida.
Airbus said a “significant number” of their A320 planes had been impacted by a software issue. They discovered that intense radiation from the sun could corrupt data crucial to flight controls, The Mirror reports.
In a statement, the plane maker said: “Analysis of a recent event involving an A320 Family aircraft has revealed that intense solar radiation may corrupt data critical to the functioning of flight controls.
“Airbus has consequently identified a significant number of A320 Family aircraft currently in-service which may be impacted.”
Fortunately for people travelling from Liverpool John Lennon Airport, no cancellations are expected. In a Facebook post, a spokesperson wrote: “Liverpool Airport is not expecting any flight disruption tomorrow, following the precautionary fleet action by Airbus.
“easyJet have confirmed they expect to carry out the necessary software updates overnight and will operate as normal. Ryanair and Jet2.com are not impacted.
“For any further questions and concerns, please contact your airline.”
An Airbus spokesperson said the necessary software change would affect up to 6,000 planes, and that for most of the affected aircraft, the required software update would take 2-3 hours. However, some aircrafts would need new hardware to be able to adopt the required software and that those aircraft would be affected for longer.
Travel Journalist Simon Cadler said it was looking really “quite concerning” for dozens of airlines and in particular, Wizz Air and EastJet, who only have Airbus A320 aircraft in their fleets. British Airways only have three of this type of aircraft.
Airbus said that it had proactively asked the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) to issue an air worthiness directive for the affected aircraft.
The UK Civil Aviation Authority said it is likely to mean some disruption and cancellation to flights.
Policy director at Civil Aviation Authority Tim Johnson told Sky News it is a “precautionary approach” and should take days to fix. He said easyJet, Jet2 and Whizz are the operators with the largest number of these aircraft.
He said: “This is a precautionary approach and we have been speaking to the UK airlines this afternoon and they are already well into their planning for implementing these changes over the coming days.
“We are aware not all UK airlines fly this particular variant, so not everyone will be affected…
“So our advice is very much to check your airline website, check your airline app and that’s the best way of finding out if your flights are disrupted. And if they are delayed or cancelled then the CAA’s website has got the information about what your rights are in that circumstance.”
Some airlines will be more affected than others, Colombian airline Avianca has announced that it will close ticket sales for 10 days due to the issue.
Wizz Air said some of its flights over the weekend may be affected, while Air India said the issue could lead to delays, according to Sky.
EasyJet said they are expecting “some disruption” and will contact customers directly if they are affected and Wizz Air has warned passengers flying with the airline they may face disruption over the weekend as a result of the update.
A spokesperson said: “Wizz Air confirms that some of its aircraft are among the more than 6,500 Airbus A320 family aircraft worldwide that require a software update, as recently identified by the aircraft manufacturer,” the airline said in a statement on Friday.
“Wizz Air has already immediately scheduled the necessary maintenance to ensure full compliance with the identified mitigation. As a result, some flights over the weekend may be affected.
“Passengers who booked directly with Wizz Air via the website or mobile app will be notified of any schedule changes.
“The safety of our customers, crew, and aircraft is always our number one and overriding priority. We apologise for any inconvenience caused by circumstances outside of our direct control.”
Giancarlo Buono, director of Aviation Safety at the UK Civil Aviation Authority, said: “We have been made aware of an issue that may affect some of the A320 family of aircraft and the precautionary action that EASA has taken. We appreciate the disruption this may cause to some people flying over the coming days.
“Passengers should check with their airline whether their flights are affected. Airlines have a duty of care to look after passengers when a flight is delayed.”
easyJet says it is aware of the communication from Airbus to airlines operating the A320 family aircraft and is “currently working closely with the safety authorities and Airbus to implement the action we need to take”.
The airline statement said it is expecting this to result in some disruption and will “inform customers directly about any changes to our flying programme tomorrow and will do all possible to minimise the impact”.
They have 480 Airbus in their fleet and have grounded 340 of them with ‘all hands on deck’ to fix the software which they say will take a few hours on each plane.
A spokesperson added: “Upon notification early this morning, American took swift action to address the software issue Airbus identified as potentially affecting a significant number of Airbus A320 family aircraft worldwide, including approximately 340 aircraft at American.”
“Safety is our highest priority and EasyJet operates its fleet of aircraft in strict compliance with manufacturers guidelines.”
But American Airlines are said to be the most affected by the recall with the recall affecting hundreds of planes at what is the busiest time for travel over Thanksgiving, which took place yesterday, November 27.