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At the end of November 2025, the world of aviation was temporarily disrupted as Airbus urgently ordered its A320 fleet out of the skies.
In an action that was alarming to those who are nervous flyers, and remained a little concerning to the rest of us, Airbus noted that their fleet could not safely fly until a software update took place.
Of course, the update was rolled out and the A320s were allowed to resume their schedules.
But what’s more fascinating is what caused the temporary grounding of the planes in the first place.
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The airbus A320 is a very safe and reliable airliner, with an extremely low fatal accident rate – in fact, it’s one of the best in the industry.
So what Airbus did on November 28th was not a cause for alarm or a reason to avoid flights on these planes.
In fact, it’s quite the opposite. It is clear evidence of the manufacturer’s continuous prioritisation of air passenger safety.
That’s because Airbus’s software update was precautionary.
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In October 2025, there was a single, non-fatal incident – the only one of its kind – in which a JetBlue Airbus A320 rapidly lost altitude. As a result, the flight from Cancun to New Jersey immediately navigated off course to Tampa Bay, Florida. Again, this was another precaution.
The cause of the incident? After analysis, Airbus have concluded that it was caused by exposure to sudden, intense solar radiation, as they explained in a statement:
“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.”
This all sounds quite worrying, but fear not: the event has allowed Airbus to update their fleet accordingly, meaning that once again, flying is statistically the safest mode of transport.
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