Passengers have been told to expect “limited” travel disruption over the weekend after several UK airlines were required to carry out a software update in some Airbus A320 aircraft.
The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), which is the main certifying authority for the A320 family of aircraft, issued the instruction on Friday night as a “precautionary action”.
It comes after at least 15 JetBlue passengers were injured last month after an A320 aircraft suddenly dropped in altitude, forcing an emergency landing in Florida, the Associated Press reported.
The plane had experienced a “flight control issue” which could be linked to its software system, according to the AP report.
Although not all A320 planes will require a software update, several UK airlines have these aircraft in their fleet and could be impacted, the EASA said.
“The requirement will mean the airlines flying these aircraft will in some cases have to change software over the days ahead or remain on the ground from Sunday onwards until the software has been changed,” it said.
“This action is likely to mean that unfortunately there may be some disruption and cancellations to flights.”
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said on Friday night the impact on UK airlines should remain “limited”.
“I am aware of the technical issue impacting certain aircraft and concerns over how this will affect passengers and flights this evening,” she said.
“Passengers who are due to fly this weekend should check with their carriers for the latest information.
“The good news is it seems the impact on UK airlines seems limited, with a smaller number of aircraft requiring more complex software and hardware changes.
“I would really like to thank the experts, staff and airlines who are working at pace to address this and reassure passengers that work is ongoing.
“It is heartening this issue has been identified and will be addressed so swiftly demonstrating the high aviation safety standards globally.”
Wizz Air said the software update was implemented on all its affected Airbus A320 family aircraft overnight and no further disruption is anticipated.
Diarmud O Conghaile, chief operations officer at Wizz Air, said: “Safety remains the airline’s highest and overriding priority, and we continue to uphold the most rigorous standards across every aspect of our operation.
“I would also like to extend my sincere thanks to our dedicated Wizz colleagues who worked tirelessly through the night to carry out the updates swiftly and efficiently. Their commitment ensured that our passengers could travel as planned, despite the challenges faced.”
EasyJet indicated in a statement there may be changes to their flying schedule as a result of the update, in which case passengers will be informed.
“We want to reassure our customers that safety is always our highest priority and our fleet operates in strict compliance with the manufacturer’s guidelines,” the statement said.
“A software change is under way on our A320 family and if there are any changes to our flying schedule we will inform you of your options by email, SMS and on Flight Tracker.”
Gatwick Airport also warned passengers may face some disruption over the coming days.
A spokesperson said: “Yesterday’s directive requiring some airlines to update software on their A320 aircraft may result in a small number of delays over the weekend. No cancellations are expected.“
Passengers flying with British Airways should not face any significant disruption as only three of their aircraft require the update, a spokesperson for the airline confirmed.
A spokesperson for Heathrow Airport said it is not expecting any disruption to its flight schedule at this stage.
Luton Airport is also expected to run its flying schedule as normal, according to a spokesperson who said there is “no expected impact to the operation at this stage”.
Irish airline Aer Lingus also said it is not expecting major operational disruption.
It said in a statement: “Following an alert raised by Airbus, a directive has been issued to airlines advising them of a requirement to update instances of a particular version of software installed on some of the global Airbus A320 family of aircraft.
“In Aer Lingus’ case, a limited number of aircraft are impacted, and the airline is taking immediate steps to complete the required software installation.
“As a result, Aer Lingus expects that there will be no significant operational disruption.”
Jet2.com said it was “installing software updates on a very small number of aircraft” in its fleet, adding: “We can confirm there will be no impact to our flying programme as a result.”
