He said this was a result of a recent software upgrade, which now had to be reversed on each aircraft before they could fly again. The updates take two to three hours.
“We have 85 [A320] aircraft [in our fleet]. However, only 34 of the aeroplanes have this anomaly identified.”
Long check-in lines at Sydney’s domestic airport.Credit: Sitthixay Ditthavong
He added: “I think the authorities in Europe and the manufacturer have done a great job in identifying this issue very promptly.
“The engineering team are able to change the software status of that computer onboard the airplane, so they need to physically get on board and do that process and then carry out sort of like control checks.”
Melbourne Airport’s Chief of Aviation Jim Parashos said all hands were on deck to help Jetstar.
“We have engineers taking a look at the aircraft on the ground, and we will get them on their way as soon as we can,” he said.
Thousands of people have had their plans upended by the nearly 100 flight cancellations on Saturday morning.Credit: Sitthixay Ditthavong
“I’ve spoken to a lot of travellers that are heading up to Byron and the Gold Coast [for schoolies]. We appreciate their frustration, but they’ve been very understanding.”
Sydney Airport said it was “supporting Jetstar as they work to resolve the issue and strongly advise all Jetstar customers to check their flight status with the airline before travelling to the airport”.
Footage from Melbourne Airport on Saturday morning shows crowds and chaos as passengers try to figure out what is happening with their flights.
Saturday morning’s delays in Australia also come after a fire forced the evacuation of Melbourne Airport’s Terminal 1 on Friday night.
Travellers trying to get to schoolies on the NSW-Queensland border are among those affected by Saturday’s disruptions.Credit: Sitthixay Ditthavong
At Sydney Airport, domestic terminal 2 was extremely crowded by 10.30am.
Virgin Australia operates only four A320s, all of them in its regional Western Australia business. The Brisbane-based airline expects to cover any disruptions with its existing capacity in its Boeing 737 fleet.
“We do not anticipate any impact to either Virgin Australia or our Regional Airline operations,” a spokesperson said.
A Qantas source said while it had some A320s in WA, the issue was not affecting its aircraft.
A sobering sight for travellers.Credit: Sitthixay Ditthavong
Air New Zealand says it has cancelled 12 flights in response to the Airbus order.
Chief Safety and Risk Officer Nathan McGraw said aircraft affected by the software recall were issued a fresh directive on Saturday, allowing affected aircraft to continue operating until 10.59am AEDT.
“This means that, where possible, we can operate A320 services today before commencing the required updates,” he said.
“Air New Zealand will begin rolling through the updates to its A320 fleet as quickly as possible to minimise ongoing disruptions.”
There are 2274 Airbus A320s in service in the Asia-Pacific region, more than any other single region globally, according to Cirium aviation analytics company.
Europe’s Airbus said it was ordering immediate repairs to 6000 of its widely used A320 family of jets.
The setback appears to be among the largest recalls affecting Airbus in its 55-year history and comes weeks after the A320 overtook the Boeing 737 as the most-delivered model.
There are about 11,300 A320-family jets in operation, including 6440 of the core A320 model, which first flew in 1987.
About 3000 A320-family jets were in the air when Airbus issued its bulletin to more than 350 of the plane’s operators.
Earlier, Airbus released a statement saying “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 said it subsequently identified “a significant number” of its aircraft which may be affected.
Reports say the incident in question involved a JetBlue flight from Cancun, Mexico, to Newark, New Jersey, on October 30, during which several passengers were injured after a sharp loss of altitude.
Inside an Airbus A320-200 aircraft cabin.Credit: Getty Images
The flight made an emergency landing in Florida and prompted an FAA investigation.
Cebu Pacific, which flies from Sydney and Melbourne to the Philippines, also took to X to confirm it is affected.
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It urged passengers travelling within the next two days to check their flight’s status on the website “before heading to the airport”.
Overseas, the world’s largest A320 operator, American Airlines, said some 340 aircraft – 70 per cent of its A320 fleet – would need the fix.
In Colombia, the recall is also affecting 70 per cent of the airline Avianca’s fleet. The airline has closed ticket sales until December 8.
Other airlines said they would take planes briefly out of service to do the repairs, including Germany’s Lufthansa, India’s IndiGo, and UK-based easyJet.
With Mary Ward, Lachlan Abbott, Rebecca Peppiatt and Reuters
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