Airbus operations began returning to normal on Monday after the European aerospace group completed a required software update faster than initially expected, preventing a prolonged disruption.
Airlines across Asia, Europe and the United States reported that they have installed the software update mandated by Airbus and approved by global aviation regulators. The measure was triggered by the discovery of a vulnerability linked to exposure to intense solar radiation, following a recent incident involving a JetBlue A320 aircraft, Reuters and Agerpres reported.
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On Monday, Airbus announced that the majority of the roughly 6,000 A320-family aircraft affected by the safety directive had already been updated, with fewer than 100 planes still awaiting the modification. The accelerated rollout exceeded earlier estimates and allowed flight operations to stabilize quickly.
Despite the swift progress, Airbus shares fell by 3%, reaching their lowest level since mid-October. Thales, the supplier of the aircraft flight computers, also saw its stock decline by around 2%. Analysts nevertheless believe the financial impact will remain limited due to the efficiency of the update process.
Airbus stated in press release this Friday that the recent incident demonstrated how intense solar radiation could interfere with data critical to flight control systems, prompting an urgent response to ensure fleet-wide safety.
Photo: CNN
