Disruption and cancellations could be possible at Scotland’s international airports as Airbus work to fix a potential issue with intense solar radiation on some aircraft.
Passengers at Scotland’s international airports are being warned of possible disruption and cancellations as Airbus work to fix an issue on some aircraft.
The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) has issued an Emergency Airworthiness Directive against the A320 family of aircraft to address a software issue with some onboard computers.
A number of aircraft in the A320 family, including the A319, A320 and A321 which are affected, fly from airports in Scotland including Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Inverness.
The directive follows an incident in October which saw 15 people injured after a JetBlue Airways A320 was forced to make an emergency landing in Florida after a sudden drop in altitude.
Airbus say that “intense solar radiation” could lead to a corruption of data critical to the flight controls.
A “significant number” of aircraft in the A320 family are affected by the issued but it is currently unknown how many Scottish flights may be affected.
It is understood that most of the affected planes only require a software update to address the issue but some older planes will require to be taken out of service for new hardware.
The UK’s Civil Aviation Authority have urged passengers to check ahead for disruption before they travel.
Giancarlo Buono, director of aviation safety at the UK Civil Aviation Authority said: “We have been made aware of an issue that may affect some of the A320 family of aircraft and the precautionary action that EASA has taken.
“We appreciate the disruption this may cause to some people flying over the coming days.
“Passengers should check with their airline whether their flights are affected. Airlines have a duty of care to look after passengers when a flight is delayed.”
A spokesperson for Airbus said: “Analysis of a recent event involving an A320 Family aircraft has revealed that intense solar radiation may corrupt data critical to the functioning of flight controls.
“Airbus has consequently identified a significant number of A320 family aircraft currently in-service which may be impacted.
“Airbus has worked proactively with the aviation authorities to request immediate precautionary action from operators via an Alert Operators Transmission (AOT) in order to implement the available software and/or hardware protection, and ensure the fleet is safe to fly. This AOT will be reflected in an Emergency Airworthiness Directive from the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA).
“Airbus acknowledges these recommendations will lead to operational disruptions to passengers and customers. We apologise for the inconvenience caused and will work closely with operators, while keeping safety as our number one and overriding priority.“
