Airbus says it modified most of its recalled 6,000 A320 aircraft

By Mucahithan Avcioglu

ISTANBUL (AA) - European aviation giant Airbus said on Monday that the vast majority of its recalled 6,000 A320 jets were now modified, with less than 100 aircraft remaining to receive modifications.

"Out of a total number of around 6,000 aircraft potentially impacted, the vast majority have now received the necessary modifications," Airbus said in a statement.

The company said it is working with airline customers to support modifications to less than 100 remaining aircraft to ensure they can be returned to service.

Airbus also apologized for delays caused to customers and airlines hit by the software issue, which affected more than half of the narrow-body fleet and forced airlines to ground jets during one of the busiest travel weekends of the year.

Last week, Airbus directed an immediate precautionary software update for its A320 family after identifying that intense solar radiation could corrupt data critical to flight-control functions.

The European manufacturer said it has consequently identified a significant number of A320 Family aircraft currently in service that may be impacted.

Meanwhile, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) issued an Emergency Airworthiness Directive (EAD) for the Airbus A320 family. "This may unfortunately cause disruption to flight schedules and inconvenience to passengers. As is always the case in aviation, safety is paramount," it wrote.