Mice Insights

By Viviane Vaz

MICE INSIGHTS (5 December 2025)

Airbus has temporarily grounded thousands of A320-family aircraft worldwide after discovering that solar radiation could interfere with flight-control computers. The good news: by December 1, 2025, nearly 6,000 aircraft had received the necessary fix, with fewer than 100 still awaiting the update. This means the vast majority of flights can operate safely and on schedule.

For event and travel planners, the impact has been noticeable but generally contained. Airports in the UK reported only limited disruption, and airlines such as Wizz Air, EasyJet, and several US carriers say the majority of updates are complete. However, some networks experienced delays and cancellations (particularly in Paris, major US hubs during the Thanksgiving peak, and parts of Australia).

The concern arises from an October incident where corrupted altitude data, triggered by intense solar radiation, caused an aircraft to suddenly descend. Regulators have since required airlines to fix the issue before carrying passengers.

✈️ Airlines affected update status

Airline / Carrier	Reported Status
🇵🇹 TAP Air Portugal	Completed update on all affected A320 aircraft (fleet of 41 jets) “without operational interruption.”
🇺🇸 American Airlines	Large operator affected — initially ~340 A320 jets; majority of updates reportedly finished over the weekend.
🇫🇷 Air France	Cancelled about 35 flights following the recall, then resumed normal operations after fixes.
🇩🇪 Lufthansa	Reported a small number of cancellations/delays as some aircraft underwent the required fixes.
🇮🇳 IndiGo	Completed software updates on its affected A320 fleet.
🇮🇳 Air India	Announced completion of software updates for its impacted A320 aircraft.
🇬🇧 easyJet	Completed updates on its A320 aircraft over the weekend; no major disruption expected.
🇨🇴 Avianca	Reported more than 70% of its fleet affected, but successfully completed the software update on December  2.
🇳🇿 Air New Zealand	Confirmed cancellations of several flights over the weekend as affected jets were grounded for updates.
🇸🇦 Flynas	Completed software updates for many of its A320 jets.
🇮🇪 Aer Lingus	Completed required software updates on all affected aircraft.
🇯🇵 ANA Holdings	Cancelled several flights after recall; working on required updates.
🇹🇷 Turkish Airlines	Some A320 jets impacted and undergoing mandated update.
🇭🇺 Wizz Air	Initiated timely updates for affected A320 aircraft.

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✅ Key takeaways

• Several major European and global carriers reported successfully completed the necessary A320‑software update with no disruption to operations.
• Some airlines (especially those with large A320/A320‑family fleets) experienced cancellations or delays, particularly over the initial recall weekend.
• For most airlines, the fix was quick (few hours); older planes needed hardware change are fewer but may take longer. 
• As of now, the majority of impacted aircraft globally have been updated, though a very small number may still be pending