Airbus Issues Urgent Safety Directive After Discovery of Solar Radiation Data Corruption Risk in A320 Family

As a former software engineer, I don't buy Airbus's explanation. Since a rollback to the previous version fixes the problem, the actual fault must logically be something that was changed in the latest update. Maybe they removed memory checking for flipped bits, or changed how the ECAS reacts when it finds that. But it was a change made by Airbus, not solely solar radiation.

It's reported that over 5000 of the 6000 affected aircraft had already had the update (? Backdate?) applied by the time this became news.

https://www.aerotime.aero/articles/a320-return-to-service-airbus-software-fixes-easa-directive

Odd. This article reports there have been no accidents or incidents. The New York Times previously reported a JetBlue diversion with 15 to 20 people sent to local hospitals to address non-life-threatening injuries. According to the website, this article was written with AI assistance. That would suggest an out-of- date data set or an AI hallucination.

The article fails to identify the specific event that was investigated that led to the Airbus directive.

Perhaps the Airbus should be outfitted with radiation sensors to confirm the theory? Proof positive is all I ask for. The ELAC glich is alarming but the autopilot was able to override the computer command. Whatever the cause, we don’t need Carl Sagan to instruct us about the total reliance on computers to aviate, navigate and communicate. The human brain was designed to undertake these tasks. Thanks for your comment.

The JetBlue Airbus A320 flight was hit by a stream of high-energy particles from a distant supernova blast that traveled millions of years, according to Clive Dyer, a space and radiation expert from the University of Surrey who spoke to space.com.

Dyer, who has studied effects of solar radiation on aircraft electronics for decades, said the radiation levels were not strong enough to impact the flight — and noted it was likely due to a supernova.

Cosmic rays are created when massive stars explode in supernovas at the end of their lives, hurling protons across the universe at the speed of light.

As the particles fly towards Earth, they may hit an electronic circuit inside an aircraft sensor or onboard computer, disrupting the plane’s flight

The lack of political intervention in aircraft safety actions is refreshing. Lord knows we seen enough of that in recent years.

Something fishy about this:

Without a formal investigation, what evidence was there to establish so quickly that the causes of the Jet Blue instability and uncommanded decent was solar radiation?

Why did only one A320 Airbus aircraft get 'impacted' by this intense radiation which required all A320's to undergo a flight critical software update?

How does a software update prevent data corruption from solar radiation?


Why were no other aircraft in the world, Airbus, Boeing or anything else including other aircraft in the vicinity of the incident aircraft, affected by this solar radiation?


Why are not all operators of all types required to update their software and/or undergo physical shielding to prevent a reoccurrences since surely this is not a specific threat to A320's alone and we are just waiting for the same thing to happen to another type of Airbus or some other manufacturers type?

As I said, it all seems a bit too convenient to quickly blame it on an 'astronomical event. As some have suggested below, a likely reason for this is a software update that caused the JetBlue issue and needed an urgent patch on all A320's to fix.

If that is true, ie a software error caused in flight instability and an uncommanded decent resulting in passenger injuries, then why is this not being investigated much more thoroughly as would rightly be demanded if it was a Boeing aircraft?

Too many questions. I bet Airbus just hopes this quietly slides off the media focus.

Just another daily cover up with the gods of money believing we're stupid enough to accept this nonsense.

Maybe they should make a tin foil hat for the airplane

If it works, fix it until it doesn’t.

These errors can usually be attributed to human falability, not to the activity of our solar protector.