Two of Europe's largest budget airlines have confirmed their flight schedules operated normally over the weekend, despite the urgent rollout of a mandatory software update for a significant portion of their fleets. The update was required to address a potential safety issue linked to intense solar radiation affecting Airbus A320 family aircraft.
Precautionary Action Following Safety Investigation
The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) issued a directive on Friday night, mandating an immediate update to a key onboard computer. This was described as a precautionary action following investigations into a recent incident. Airbus stated that investigations revealed intense solar radiation could corrupt data critical to flight controls, potentially leading to operational disruptions.
The plane maker indicated that a significant number of its A320 aircraft globally required the immediate software patch. The warning initially sparked fears of widespread delays and cancellations, particularly coming after the busy US Thanksgiving travel period.
Coordinated Response from Airlines
EasyJet, whose entire fleet comprises Airbus aircraft, stated it worked closely with regulators and Airbus to determine the necessary actions. The Luton-based carrier completed all required software updates over the weekend. Chief Executive Kenton Jarvis praised engineering teams who worked around the clock, ensuring the work was finished without any disruption to their flying programme.
Wizz Air reported that 83 of its aircraft needed the update, confirming the work was successfully completed with zero flight cancellations. The airline credited the coordinated response of its engineering and operations teams.
The UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) said on Saturday that the impact in Britain was minimal. British Airways noted only three of its aircraft required the update, expecting no significant disruption for passengers.
Root Cause and Wider Impact
The urgent update was reportedly prompted by an incident on 30 October, involving a JetBlue Airbus A320 flying from Cancun to Newark. The aircraft experienced a computer glitch, leading to a sudden altitude drop and forcing an emergency landing in Florida.
It is understood approximately 6,000 aircraft in the popular A320 family were affected by the technical issue. While most can be fixed by the software update, around 900 older aircraft are reported to require a hardware change, which could ground them for several weeks.
Analysts suggest the episode may lead to additional costs for Airbus or its software supplier Thales, potentially running into tens of millions of euros. Reflecting the concern, Airbus shares fell 3% in Paris trading on Monday morning, while UK airline stocks showed resilience given the minimal operational impact.
