Airbus orders software fix to thousands of planes due to solar radiation risk

Source: TechCrunch

Overview

Flights were delayed and cancelled globally after Airbus ordered fixes to 6,000 of its A320 series planes, according to The Guardian.

The company said it is taking action because “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.” (Source: Airbus press release)

Incident details

• Date: 30 October 2025
• Flight: JetBlue, Cancun → Newark
• Event: Sudden loss of altitude, emergency landing in Tampa, Florida
• Source: Reported by Reuters (via NY Post)

Regulatory response

• The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has issued an emergency airworthiness directive.
• Affected aircraft must revert to earlier software before they can resume flight operations.
• A smaller subset of the fleet will also require hardware replacements.