NEW DELHI: Airlines across nation are rushing to complete emergency software upgrades on more than 350 Airbus A320-family aircraft after a rare global safety directive warned that intense solar radiation could corrupt flight-control data and trigger sudden, uncommanded aircraft movements. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) ordered immediate compliance on Saturday after Airbus flagged a vulnerability in ELAC B flight-control computers running software version L104, the same configuration linked to an October 30 JetBlue A320 incident in which the aircraft unexpectedly pitched downward without pilot input, injuring several passengers and prompting a US federal investigation.
The Ministry of Civil Aviation, quoted by ANI, said late Saturday that IndiGo, Air India and Air India Express have accelerated upgrades across their fleets and expect full compliance by the end of the day. IndiGo has 200 affected aircraft and has completed upgrades on 184, with the remainder expected to be cleared by 23:59 hours. Air India has 113 aircraft requiring the fix and has completed 69 installations, while Air India Express has upgraded 17 of its 25 affected aircraft. The DGCA has stressed that no aircraft may operate until the mandatory modification is complete, except for repositioning flights to maintenance bases. Airbus issued the urgent global alert after determining that solar flares can, under certain conditions, corrupt data used by the aircraft’s elevator control computers, potentially causing unexpected control-surface movements. The company has instructed operators worldwide to immediately revert to an earlier, stable software version. The issue affects about 6,000 A320-family aircraft globally, although roughly 1,000 older jets may require hardware replacements, a process that will take longer. The directive has triggered widespread disruption during one of the busiest travel periods of the year, with airlines across Europe and the Americas reporting delays and cancellations as they verify software versions and apply the fix. American Airlines has identified hundreds of aircraft requiring the update, Air France has cancelled several flights, Avianca has paused ticket sales into December, and carriers including Delta, Finnair, Volaris and Air New Zealand have warned of operational impact. Europe’s aviation regulator, EASA, has directed operators to complete the fix before their next flight, acknowledging the inconvenience but underscoring that safety remains paramount. Although the update takes only around two hours per aircraft, maintenance lines worldwide are already stretched by ongoing engine-related groundings and labour shortages, forcing airlines to use overnight maintenance windows and short turnaround periods to complete the repair. Airbus’s directive is among the most significant recalls in its history and comes at a time when more than 3,000 A320-family aircraft were airborne globally, highlighting the scale and urgency of the operation. India operates one of the world’s largest A320 fleets, dominated by IndiGo and the Air India group. The A320, which introduced fly-by-wire controls to commercial aviation in the 1980s, now accounts for a substantial share of global traffic. The latest safety update adds to the mounting technical pressures on the aviation sector as regulators move quickly to address emerging electronic and software vulnerabilities linked to space-weather events.
