Airbus has ordered immediate repairs to 6,000 of its widely used A320-family jets, a sweeping recall impacting more than half the global fleet and threatening major travel disruptions across the United States and around the world.
The directive, confirmed Friday, follows an incident linked to potential software corruption caused by solar flares, which Airbus says may affect data critical to flight controls. According to a bulletin sent to more than 350 operators, the fix primarily involves reverting to earlier software and must be implemented before aircraft can resume flying, aside from repositioning flights to repair centres.
At the time the bulletin was issued, more than 3,000 A320-family aircraft were in the air, underscoring the scale of the disruption.
Industry sources said the recall appears to be one of the largest in Airbus’ 55-year history, coming just weeks after the A320 surpassed the Boeing 737 as the world’s most-delivered aircraft model.
Airlines warn of delays, cancellations, grounded jets
Airlines from the US, Europe, India, South America, and New Zealand have all warned of service disruptions. Many carriers expect delays or flight cancellations as jets undergo the mandatory two-hour software rollback.
American Airlines, the world’s largest A320 operator, said 340 of its 480 aircraft require the fix. The airline expects most repairs to be completed by Saturday, with each aircraft needing approximately two hours of work.
Lufthansa said a small number of cancellations or delays are expected over the weekend, noting that implementing the measures may take several hours per aircraft.
Avianca, whose fleet is heavily dependent on the A320, said over 70% of its aircraft are affected. The Colombian carrier has suspended ticket sales through December 8 due to “significant” operational disruptions.
easyJet has already completed updates on many affected aircraft and expects to operate normally on Saturday.
Air France cancelled 35 flights on Friday -- about 5% of its daily schedule.
Air New Zealand said its A320neo fleet would require updates before their next flights, warning of cancellations on Saturday.
Wizz Air, Air India, Air India Express, IndiGo, Volaris, Latam, Turkish Airlines, Viva, Aer Lingus, and others also reported varying levels of delays, schedule changes or disruptions.
United Airlines and Brazil’s Azul said they were not impacted by the recall.
Massive fleet, limited repair capacity create global strain
There are approximately 11,300 A320-family jets in service worldwide, including 6,440 of the core A320 model, which first entered operation in 1987. Four of the world’s largest A320 operators -- American Airlines, Delta, JetBlue, and United -- are based in the United States.
For around two-thirds of the affected aircraft, the recall will cause a brief grounding as software is rolled back. However, more than 1,000 aircraft may also require hardware changes, potentially extending out-of-service times.
Compounding the disruption, maintenance shops are already over capacity, with hundreds of Airbus jets grounded for unrelated engine repairs and inspections, alongside widespread labour shortages.
Aviation consultant Mike Stengel said the timing was “definitely not ideal,” given the US holiday travel rush and the A320’s ubiquity. However, the relatively quick fix means many updates can be completed overnight or between scheduled flights.
JetBlue incident under investigation
Industry sources said the recall was triggered by a JetBlue flight traveling from Cancun to Newark on October 30, during which several passengers were injured following a sudden uncommanded drop in altitude.
The A320 involved made an emergency landing in Tampa, Florida, after a flight-control malfunction linked to the issue now under scrutiny. The FAA has launched an investigation. Neither JetBlue nor the FAA commented on the recall.
Late Friday, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) issued an emergency directive making the Airbus fix mandatory.
The Airbus bulletin attributes the issue to the ELAC (Elevator and Aileron Computer) system, which translates pilot commands from the side-stick into elevator movements that control the aircraft’s pitch.
Thales, the French manufacturer of the ELAC computer, said it complies fully with Airbus specifications and noted that the affected functionality is tied to Airbus-managed software, not Thales hardware.
Global disruptions continue to unfold
The recall has produced ripple effects across continents. A Finnair flight was delayed nearly an hour while pilots verified their software version. Volaris warned of disruption lasting 48–72 hours, while Air India expects longer turnaround times as part of its fleet undergoes software and hardware realignments.
Despite the upheaval, some airlines -- such as Turkish Airlines and Aer Lingus -- expect only limited operational impact, while others face challenging days ahead as hangar capacity tightens and holiday travel surges.
