DGCA Grounds Airbus A320 Family Over Safety Risk Linked to Solar Radiation
India’s aviation regulator, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), has ordered the grounding of all Airbus A318, A319, A320, and A321 aircraft until mandatory safety fixes are completed, following an urgent directive from the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). The move affects India’s largest fleet segment and forces airlines such as IndiGo, Air India, and Air India Express to halt operations of affected aircraft while mandatory inspections, software updates, and hardware replacements are carried out.
The global safety alert was triggered by an October 2025 JetBlue A320 incident in which the aircraft suddenly pitched downward due to suspected data corruption in the Elevator Aileron Computer (ELAC) during a system switch. Airbus later determined that intense solar radiation could interfere with the flight-control computers on certain A320-family aircraft, prompting regulators to issue emergency directives. EASA warned that, without corrective action, the malfunction could lead to uncommanded elevator movement, posing a serious flight-safety risk.
With India operating around 560 jets in the A320 family, the grounding could affect 200–250 aircraft nationwide, causing delays and major schedule disruptions. Airlines are scrambling to reshuffle operations, deploy standby aircraft, and fast-track engineering checks. The DGCA has stated that no affected aircraft can return to service until all EASA-mandated modifications are fully complied with, making this one of the most significant safety interventions in India’s aviation sector in recent years.
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