Airbus has confirmed that an unspecified number of its aircraft will undergo inspections after a “supplier quality issue” was identified with metal panels used on some A320 aircraft.
The problem, which the company says affects a “limited number” of planes, comes days after thousands of planes of the same model were grounded due to an urgent software update.
On Tuesday, the European manufacturer said it was taking a “conservative approach” in checking all planes that could be affected, although not all are expected to need repairs.
The company told AFP that around 600 A320 planes, a model widely used by major airlines, could be affected. Airbus did not confirm the figure in its response to the BBC.
“The source of the problem has been identified, contained and all newly produced panels meet all requirements,” the Airbus spokesperson told the BBC.
A statement continues: “Only inspections will determine where an aircraft may have panels with quality issues and the appropriate actions to take.”
AFP reported that Airbus said the number of planes that needed to be checked was “reducing day by day as inspections progressed to identify those that needed specific action.”
The BBC has contacted major airlines using the A320, including British Airways, American Airlines, Korean Air, Lufthansa Airlines and Delta, for comment.
Earlier this week, thousands of Airbus planes were grounded for a software update after it was discovered that intense solar radiation could interfere with onboard flight control computers.
That problem was discovered after a plane traveling between the United States and Mexico suddenly lost altitude as a result of the vulnerability, injuring 15 people.
More than 6,000 Airbus aircraft required emergency computer upgrades in one of the aviation industry’s largest recalls.
This caused global disruption and flight cancellations during the last weekend of November, a busy time of year for travel, particularly in the United States, where it coincided with Thanksgiving.
Airbus shares have fallen more than 6.5% in the last five days.
