Airbus grounds all A320s worldwide.
Posted by OPS18@reddit | aviation | View on Reddit | 45 comments
As the title says, all A320s are grounded pending a software update. American owns over 300 of the affected aircraft, hoping for the best during this holiday weekend.
anactualspacecadet@reddit
Someone should really invent a way of wirelessly disseminating software updates then it would take 30 minutes to resolve this…
OH WAIT!
local_meme_dealer45@reddit
Yeah... no. We're not connecting aircraft flight control computers to the Internet. That's an awful idea for so many reasons.
anactualspacecadet@reddit
Jesus christ its really the dullest of the dull here. So you don’t have to connect the jet to the internet to get the update on there, if you can’t think your way around this one I’m not sure explaining it would help at all.
local_meme_dealer45@reddit
Even if airgapped being able to patch the software like you're suggesting would provide a much larger attack vector for a supply chain cyber attack.
The risk is small however the flight computers on a fly by wire aircraft are not the kind of thing you want to be prioritising speed over safety on.
anactualspacecadet@reddit
https://www.reddit.com/r/aviation/s/EqBjO8TlWO
Here you go goofy ass mf
anactualspacecadet@reddit
Hate to break it to you man but… this is exactly how they patch software lmao
C4-621-Raven@reddit
Yeah no, that’s a security risk we’re not willing to take.
anactualspacecadet@reddit
“Security risk” dude shut up you don’t know what you’re talking about lmao, i swear the less danger a pilot is actually in the more seriously they take “security”
C4-621-Raven@reddit
I’m not a pilot, I’m an aircraft maintenance engineer. I do know what I’m talking about because it’s my job. Wirelessly transmitting updates has more potential for tampering, interference or corruption as opposed to a physical transfer of verified software from a verified UMD.
And the inertial reference system will provide “good enough” navigation to get where you’re going across the pacific.
Now why are you so angry?
anactualspacecadet@reddit
I can tell you’re not a pilot, the IRUs are shit, if you’re flying to Tokyo from Hawaii on IRUs you will end up in Russia. There is a lot of error in those.
C4-621-Raven@reddit
If your IRU is drifting more than 25NM in 10H that’s a replace after 2 FC problem, if it’s more than 35NM that’s a replace after 1 FC problem. So even with a bad IRU Tokyo isn’t within 35NM from Russian airspace at any point.
TGM_999@reddit
You really want to add such a vulnerability to aircraft carrying hundreds of people? I'd rather they have flight-critical components isolated from the internet
anactualspacecadet@reddit
Dude you don’t fly combat missions, relax. Airlines fly entirely on GPS, THATS a vulnerability.
Difficult_Camel_1119@reddit
airlines do not rely on gps, it just makes it easier. In eastern europe/baltics, gps jamming (by russia?) is quite common and they just fly without gps
anactualspacecadet@reddit
Over land obviously you can fly with navaids but even then they still fly with GPS until its time to do the approach, and even then people do rnavs most of the time.
TGM_999@reddit
What do combat missions have to do with the potential of being able to send an unauthorised update that could affect the safety of a flight? Also they don't rely entirely on GPS at all that's also not the same type of vulnerability anyway. That's just vulnerable to jamming and there are other radio and also INS as back-ups
anactualspacecadet@reddit
Its a goofy argument, first off jets that do fly combat missions use removable media, they download stuff from…. THE INTERNET, onto the media and then put that in the jet, but the only reason we do that is because our jet is old. See when they make the internet they also had this thing called encryption that prevents the scenario you just listed, its actually much harder to bypass encryption than it would be to wear a high vis vest and some ear muffs and sneak onto the ramp and into a jet.
ILikeFlyingMachines@reddit
How? An Airliner has no internet connection (at least not mandatory/not all). So you would need to do this over VHF data. That's slow AF.
Also the Bus inside the plane is slow AF AND the security risk is very high if you allow remote software updates.
A3bilbaNEO@reddit
Does Airbus actually provide software updates via web database? Can these be instaled via USB drive?
ILikeFlyingMachines@reddit
Not a tech but I highly doubt it's USB, the 320 was designed in the 80s. I would assume floppys
anactualspacecadet@reddit
Yeah its impossible to update avionics lmao
anactualspacecadet@reddit
Wow good thing they don’t got you solving their problems right?
So what we do with my jet from the 90s when we need to add something from the internet is burn it onto a CD (pretty nifty tech i know) and them we put that CD in the jet, takes 30 minutes.
HypoTomasis@reddit
What about 321?
mrblack1998@reddit
Currently flying on a 321 and this was announced before we took off. So I'm not sure it is affected
Difficult_Camel_1119@reddit
it just needs a software update, so it could already be solved on your plane
thunder6776@reddit
Yes software update to the fmc mid-flight.
Difficult_Camel_1119@reddit
no, (s)he said it was known before take-off, so the software update could have been before take-off
thunder6776@reddit
Apologies
mrblack1998@reddit
Interesting.
TGM_999@reddit
The AD isn't effective yet but Airbus issued their own bulletin hours before it was known publicly, so it may already have the fix
ILikeFlyingMachines@reddit
The entire Family, so 318, 319, 320, 321
TGM_999@reddit
A318s are not listed on the AD
DwightsShirtGuy@reddit
From our company: easy fix, only a few effected, fully resolved by AM. (It’s evening here currently)
eric_gm@reddit
Affected*
DwightsShirtGuy@reddit
Worthwhile contribution
Nok1a_@reddit
Oh well that´s great Im flying in 2 weeks time, and I will remember this as the plane take off
doom_pizza@reddit
Already discussed https://www.reddit.com/r/aviation/s/Bke4fHlqKt
sharkbite217@reddit
Not all 320s. But thanks for the clickbait title
bp4850@reddit
The link is now dead, but no, they have not grounded all A320s
Difficult_Camel_1119@reddit
they are all grounded until software update is performed (which for the majoritycan be done off-base). Up to 3 legs can be flown but only without passengers
bp4850@reddit
Not all. Only aircraft with a specific ELAC software version are grounded, which is approximately 53% of the family according to Airbus.
crewsctrl@reddit
Just a typo, remove "avia" from the end of the URL.
bp4850@reddit
Thanks. Airbus estimates around 6000 frames. That is not the entire A320 family, there's around 11,300 in service.
_Zenyatta_Mondatta@reddit
https://www.airbus.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2025-11-airbus-update-on-a320-family-precautionary-fleet-action
i0unothing@reddit