Airbus Orders Fixes for 6,000 A320 Planes amid Solar Radiation concerns
November 28,2025 – Global air travel is facing potential disruption as Airbus has ordered fixes for approximately 6,000 of its A320 series aircraft due to a newly identified risk of data corruption affecting flight controls. The issue, stemming from potential interference from intense solar radiation, prompted the company to issue a fleet-wide precautionary action.
According to an official statement from Airbus, analysis of a recent incident involving an A320 Family aircraft revealed that strong solar radiation could corrupt data critical to the operation of the plane’s flight controls. “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,” the company stated in a press release.
industry sources, cited by Reuters, have linked the issue to a JetBlue flight on October 30th. The flight, traveling from Cancun, Mexico to Newark, New Jersey, experienced a sudden loss of altitude and was forced to make an emergency landing in Tampa, Florida.
The federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has responded by issuing an emergency airworthiness directive. This directive requires airlines to revert affected aircraft to earlier software versions to ensure safe operation.Airbus has indicated that a smaller number of planes will require hardware modifications to fully address the vulnerability.
the A320 family of aircraft is one of the moast widely used in the world, and this directive is expected to cause delays and cancellations as airlines work to implement the necessary fixes. Passengers are advised to check with their airlines for the latest information regarding their flights. The long-term impact on air travel schedules remains to be seen, but Airbus is prioritizing the safety of its aircraft and passengers.
Understanding the Risk: Solar Radiation and Aircraft systems
While seemingly unusual, the vulnerability to solar radiation highlights the increasing complexity of modern aircraft systems. Modern planes rely heavily on elegant electronics, and these systems can be susceptible to interference from external electromagnetic sources, including solar flares and coronal mass ejections. Manufacturers are continually working to harden these systems against such interference, but the recent Airbus incident demonstrates that vulnerabilities can still exist.
