U.S. Airlines Avoid Major Impact From Airbus ELAC Issue

Manufacturer says less than 100 out of about 6,000 potentially impacted aircraft still require modifications.

Jack Daleo

Monday, December 01, 2025 at 01:48 PM ET

Verified

Edited By:

Travis Tingle

Regulators required modifications to certain Airbus aircraft after an A320 operating JetBlue Flight 1230 suffered a possible software vulnerability. [Credit: JetBlue Airways]

Key Takeaways:

U.S. airlines implemented emergency modifications on hundreds of Airbus A319, A320, and A321 aircraft due to a potential malfunction in the elevator aileron computer (ELAC) system, possibly caused by intense solar radiation, following an A320 altitude-loss event.
Despite the mandatory modifications, most U.S. carriers, including American and Delta, reported minimal to no major disruptions or cancellations, with updates largely completed swiftly.
Separately, Airbus also identified a new quality issue affecting a limited number of A320-family metal panels, which the company states has been contained and resolved for new production.

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U.S. airlines appear to have avoided major disruptions after the FAA required emergency modifications to about 545 Airbus A319, A320, and A321 models.

Airbus on Friday said that after an A320 altitude-loss event in October, a preliminary analysis found that “intense solar radiation” may have caused a malfunction of the aircraft’s elevator aileron computer (ELAC) system, which uses pilot commands to control elevators and ailerons. That prompted the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and FAA to issue emergency airworthiness directives (EADs) grounding certain A319, A320, and A321 models until carriers completed ELAC modifications.