Airbus A320 recall disrupts global travel after glitch linked to solar flares

Air India, which is partially owned by Singapore Airlines, said it had completed software updates on over 40% of its affected aircraft and that there were no flight cancellations, although some flights were delayed or rescheduled.

Scoot, another carrier under the Singapore Airlines group, said 21 of its 29 A320s required the fix and that it aimed to complete the work by Saturday.

In Australia, Jetstar Airways canceled around 90 flights after identifying 34 aircraft that required the software correction.

“As of 3:30 pm [local time], 20 of the 34 affected aircraft are ready to return to service. We’re expecting the remaining to be ready overnight, allowing flights to resume as planned on Sunday 30 November,” a Jetstar spokesperson told CNBC.

The budget airline and its parent company, Qantas, which is Australia’s national flag carrier, together hold about 65% of the domestic market. Rival Virgin Australia, which has four A320s in its fleet and a 35% share, said that it was unaffected by the recall.

The European Union Aviation Safety Agency said in a directive on Friday that a JetBlue flight on Oct. 30 experienced an “uncommanded and limited pitch down event.” The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration also issued an emergency directive later that day, ordering operators of the affected model to address the glitch.

Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury said in a LinkedIn post: “The fix required on some #A320 aircraft has been causing significant logistical challenges and delays since yesterday. … Our teams are working around the clock to support our operators and ensure these updates are deployed as swiftly as possible to get planes back in the sky and resume normal operations.”