Due to worldwide worries about possible software-related flight-control vulnerabilities, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has issued a mandatory safety directive for Airbus A318, A319, A320, and A321 planes. The directive calls for immediate inspections and compliance actions to maintain operational safety and eliminate risks associated with recent international aviation incidents.
The notification reads, “Inspection and/or Modification on the following subject is mandatory. Please make necessary amendment in below mentioned Mandatory Modification List. This is to be ensured that no person shall operate the product which falls under the applicability of this Mandatory Modification except those which are in accordance with the compliance to requirement of Mandatory Modification (s)/ applicable Airworthiness Directive(s)…”
The Airbus A320 Scare: When The Sun Joined The Cockpit
The Airbus A320 safety case came to light after JetBlue’s flight in October 2025 had an unexpected and uncommanded drop in altitude. The investigation later pointed to solar radiation as the culprit, which had invaded the aircraft’s Elevator Aileron Computer (ELAC), causing flight-control data to be corrupted. This case not only exposed an essential risk of fly-by-wire systems but also showcased how environmental factors, in this case, cosmic particles, could interfere with the avionics.
As a result of the investigation, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) issued an emergency Airworthiness Directive, which required a software rollback or hardware replacement within a short period for thousands of A320-family aircraft. In line with the global safety measures, mandatory safety directives were also released in India by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) for Airbus A318, A319, A320, and A321 models.
The incident highlights the need of the hour, which includes system redundancy, environmental risk assessment, and continuous monitoring of electronic systems so that safety is never compromised in this digital age of aviation.
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