A significant portion of the global Airbus fleet was grounded after the European manufacturer discovered a technical fault related to solar radiation in the A320 family of aircraft.
Airbus said in a statement late on Friday that it had identified an issue with its in-service A320 aircraft.
"Intense solar radiation can corrupt data critical to the operation of flight control systems."
– the statement said, adding that the company had identified a "significant number" of affected aircraft.
Decision by EU aviation agency
The European Union Aviation Safety Agency announced on Friday evening a temporary grounding of certain Airbus aircraft after a JetBlue flight from Florida to Mexico was forced to make an emergency landing due to a sudden loss of altitude. Media reports indicate that around 15 people were hospitalized following the incident.
Scale of the problem
Sara Ricci, head of communications for Airbus's commercial aircraft division, said that about 6,000 aircraft were affected, but for 85 percent of the impacted planes it will be a "quick software fix."
"The vast majority will be back in the sky very soon."
– Ricci said.
Affected airlines
Several carriers across Europe have said they were affected, including Lufthansa, Swiss and Austrian Airlines. Brussels Airlines said that none of its flights were affected.
