Airbus orders โGrounding of A320 Fleet Due to โฃSolar Radiation Vulnerability
November 29, โข2025 โ- 06:07 – Airbus has issued an urgent directive to โฃairlines operating its A320 aircraft to “immediately stop flights” of approximately 6,000 planes to facilitate theโ replacement ofโ a โnavigation control programme susceptible โฃto disruption fromโ solar radiation. The announcement, made by a company spokesperson to AFP on Friday, has triggered flight delays โขand cancellations globally, impacting travel from locations including โคthe Philippines โฃand Colombia.
The directive stems from โa technical incident that occurred in late October involving a device in the United States.Analysis revealed โthat intense solar radiation could potentially corrupt critical โdata used forโฃ flight command operations.
While software updates will resolve the issue for theโข majority of aircraft within “a few hours,” roughly 1,000 planesโ will require hardware replacements,a process expected to takeโค “weeks,” according to a โsource familiar with the matter. The affected system โฃis the ELAC (Elevator and Aileron Computer), responsible for controlling the aircraft’s elevators and ailerons.
Airbusโข acknowledged the operational disruption this will cause and issued an apology to passengers and customers. The company stated it will prioritize safety and work closely with operators throughout the update โฃprocess.
Airline Impacts:
several airlines have already begun responding to theโ directive. Air France has โฃcancelled 35 flights on Friday โand is assessing the impact on Saturday’s schedule. Affected customers are being โขnotified viaโฃ SMS and email.
Avianca, a Colombianโข airline, reported “significant” effects โฃon its operations, with the program update impactingโข over 70% of its fleet.โค Ticket sales have been suspended until December 8.
Americanโ Airlines anticipates “some delays” but expects to complete the โขsoftware update on its fleet โof approximately 340 aircraft by Saturday.JetBlue has โคinitiated modifications on some A320 and A321 aircraft but declined to provide further comment. โฃAir Indiaโ hasโค warned of potentialโ delays due to grounded planes.
Delta Air โLines aimsโ to complete โupgrades on a portion of its A320 and A321neo fleet โby Saturday morning.
In the Philippines,Philippine Airlines and Cebu Pacific have cancelled over 40 flights,offering refunds and rescheduling optionsโข to impacted passengers. โฃMexican low-cost carriers Volaris and Viva Aerobรบs have reported anticipated delaysโ and are implementing measures to minimize disruption to travelers,though specific details โฃregardingโข affected flights and aircraft numbers were not disclosed.
Incident Background:
The issue originated from anโฃ incident โขon โOctober 30, when a โJetBlue Airbus A320 โexperienced an in-flight control problem โคduring a cruise between Cancรบn, Mexico, and Newark,โ United States. the aircraftโข unexpectedly descended without pilot input, ultimately landing in Tampa, Florida, where several โขpassengers reportedly sustained injuries.
The Airbus A320, first entering service in 1988, is the world’s best-selling aircraft. As of September,โ Airbus had delivered 12,257 A320 units (including private versions), surpassing Boeing’s 737, which began deliveriesโฃ in 1968โ with a totalโ of 12,254โ units delivered asโ of the sameโ period.
