New Delhi, Nov 29 (PTI) Indian airlines said some flights may be delayed or cancelled on Saturday as they carry out the required software or hardware realignment to their A320 family planes to address the potential issue due to intense solar radiation.
With many of the narrow-body A320 family planes of the domestic carriers set to undergo software changes or in some cases hardware realignment, there will be operational disruptions as the aircraft have to be grounded briefly, according to sources.
Airbus on Friday said intense solar radiation might corrupt data critical to flight controls in a significant number of A320 family aircraft and that the software changes required to fix the issue would lead to operational disruptions.
The country’s largest airline IndiGo said it is aware of a notification issued by Airbus, the manufacturer of the majority of its fleet, pertaining to the A320 family planes.
“We are working closely with Airbus to ensure implementation as per Airbus notification. While we carry out the necessary inspections, we are making every effort to minimise disruptions,” it said in a statement.
In a statement, Air India Express said, “We have initiated immediate precautionary action in response to an alert requiring a software fix on the Airbus A320 fleet. While a majority of our aircraft are not impacted, the guidance applies to operators worldwide and may result in adjustments to flight operations, including potential delays or cancellations.” A source said that 31 A320 family planes of Air India Express will be impacted.
In a post on X, Air India said it is aware of an Airbus directive related to its A320 family aircraft currently in-service across airline operators.
“This will result in a software/hardware realignment on a part of our fleet, leading to longer turnaround time and delays to our scheduled operations.
“Air India regrets any inconvenience this may cause to passengers till the reset is carried out across the fleet,” the airline said.
The three airlines did not disclose the number of aircraft that have been impacted.
Around 200-250 Airbus A320 family planes operated by Indian airlines will need software changes to address the potential issue of intense solar radiation impacting data critical to flight controls, a source said.
A320 family aircraft includes A319s, A320 ceos and neos, A321 ceos and neos. PTI RAM SKY SKY
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