Australian airports thrown into chaos as Airbus A320 planes recalled worldwide
Sydney, Nov 29 (IANS/GURPUNEET SIDHU) Passengers across Australian airports were thrown into chaos on Saturday after plane maker Airbus issued an urgent software update affecting one of the world’s most popular aircraft.
Passengers flying with Australia’s Jetstar Airways have been advised to expect significant delays due to a global recall of thousands of A320 aircraft. Jetstar has cancelled or delayed about 90 flights while rolling out urgent software updates to 34 of its planes, while Qantas said its services were not affected.
The flight disruptions in Australia were affecting all major domestic airports on Saturday morning, with multiple flight cancellations at all airports handling Jetstar flights.
Many Jetstar flights from Sydney to the Australian state of Victoria’s Tullamarine and Avalon airports, Adelaide, Perth and Hobart in Australia were cancelled on Saturday morning.
Perth Airport said the recall would also impact the Western Australian state and urged passengers to check with their airlines as the situation developed.
Qantas confirmed its new Airbus A321xlr planes are not affected.
Adding to the delays and difficulties re-accommodating passengers, a fire broke out at a terminal at Melbourne Airport in Victoria overnight. It was a busy weekend of travel ahead of schoolies week celebrations.
In a noisy Melbourne terminal packed with nervous travelers, Jetstar chief pilot Tyrone Simes said about 90 flights were affected on Saturday, Xinhua news agency reported.
Explaining the problem, he said a flight control computer on board the affected planes had “shown an anomaly,” adding this was a result of a recent software upgrade.
“I think the authorities in Europe and the manufacturer have done a great job in identifying this issue very promptly,” he said.
Melbourne Airport’s Chief of Aviation Jim Parashos said all hands were on deck to help Jetstar.
“We have engineers taking a look at the aircraft on the ground, and we will get them on their way as soon as we can,” he said.
Sydney Airport said it was “supporting Jetstar as they work to resolve the issue and strongly advise all Jetstar customers to check their flight status with the airline before traveling to the airport.”
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