Air India A320 neo (Source: Air India official website)

NEW DELHI: The director general of civil aviation (DGCA) on Saturday issued a mandatory safety order for Airbus A318, A319, A320, and A321 aircraft. This came after Airbus announced an urgent software repair for 6,000 A320-family jets, a large recall that affects more than half of the global fleet and is expected to significantly impact India’s air traffic.The DGCA notification said, “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)...”

In India, more than 350 A320 aircraft operated by IndiGo and Air India will be grounded for two to three days for the required update. Airlines expect normal operations to resume by Monday or Tuesday.Air India said it is “aware of a directive from Airbus related to its A320 family aircraft currently in service across airline operators,” and explained that the process will require a “software/hardware realignment” on part of its fleet. The airline warned that “longer turnaround times and delays” are likely. Air India recently completed the refurbishment of 27 older A320neo aircraft and now operates around 104 A320-family jets after adding new deliveries and integrating aircraft from Vistara.IndiGo also confirmed it is following the directive, stating that “safety comes first” and that it is carrying out the updates “with full diligence and care.” The airline has cautioned passengers that some flights may face schedule changes. With over 350 A320-family aircraft, mostly newer variants, IndiGo is expected to finish updates on about 250 planes by Monday or Tuesday. Air India, with around 120–125 A320s, is likely to complete updates on more than 100 aircraft in a similar timeframe.The upgrade was prompted by an incident involving a JetBlue A320 flying from Cancun to Newark on October 30, 2025. According to the National Transportation Safety Board, the aircraft “unexpectedly pitch(ing) downward without pilot input,” and the sudden drop “likely occurred during an ELAC (flight control computer) switch change.” The aircraft diverted to Tampa, where some passengers required hospitalisation.