(KTLA) — After a recent analysis revealed why one of its planes briefly and unexpectedly lost altitude mid-flight last month, Airbus ordered urgent updates to thousands of its jets on Friday, possibly causing disruptions to the busy holiday travel season.
The major aerospace company says the issue was traced back to a malfunction in a flight-control computer in its A320 Family aircraft, indicating that “intense solar radiation may corrupt data critical to the functioning of flight controls.”
The problem, according to aviation safety officials, came to light after an A320 experienced a limited, uncommanded pitch-down while on autopilot, resulting in a brief loss of altitude before the flight continued normally.
In an emergency airworthiness directive issued Friday, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency warned that “this condition, if not corrected, could lead in the worst-case scenario to an uncommanded elevator movement that may result in exceeding the aircraft’s structural capability.” Airlines have been instructed to install updated software or replace affected components before flying passengers again, though limited ferry flights without passengers are allowed.
The BBC reports that more than 6,000 A320-family aircraft worldwide fall under the alert. About 5,100 can receive a software update, while roughly 900 older jets will require hardware replacements that take them temporarily out of service.
In the U.S., airlines are still determining how many of their fleets are affected. American Airlines told Business Insider that as many as 340 aircraft could require updates, though it expects the actual number to be lower and said each update takes about two hours per jet. Delta said fewer than 50 of its newer Airbus aircraft are involved, while United said none of its aircraft are affected.
Regulators in the UK and Europe told the BBC that passengers should prepare for possible delays or cancellations in the coming days as airlines complete the required work.
Airbus apologized for the disruption and said it is working closely with authorities, calling safety its “number one and overriding priority.”