Airlines across the world have been sent an urgent warning by regulators
As parts of the world slowly recovers from the pandemic, and consumer confidence in travel peaks, airlines are being urged to check a certain type of aircraft that millions of people fly on each and every year.
Regulators have called for more rigorous checks when pulling some Airbus Aircraft out of pandemic storage, following flawed cockpit readings that can suggest blocked sensors.
Pilots rely on airspeed readings obtained from external probes known as pitot tubes, which can become blocked by insect nests or dirt if they are not properly sealed during storage.
Multiple airlines forced to abort takeoffs
The European Union Aviation Safety Agency confirmed that recently, airline operations have become disrupted due to incidents involving the A320 range of aircraft.
“an increasing number of operational disruptions have been reported due to airspeed discrepancies” as they return to the air.
A spokesperson said the events included commercial flights and in most cases led to aborted takeoff. “EASA had no reports of any resultant injuries, aircraft or system issues,” she said.
Asked whether passengers had been on board, an Airbus spokesperson said it did not have a breakdown between passenger, freight or technical check flights.
Recent reports have now prompted Airbus to carry out further computer simulations which suggested that problems with two out of three sensors may affect the plane’s stability during take-off. The agency noted however that none of these events happened in operations.
The Airbus spokesperson said these follow-up actions were precautionary and that safety was its chief priority.
“Alarming” Rise in Cases
The European Union Aviation Safety Agency first reported an “alarming” rise in August 2020. The agency saw a rise in the general number of cases of unreliable cockpit indications during the first flight of jets leaving storage.
It called on operators of all makes and models of passenger aircraft to be vigilant.
Pilot rustiness, maintenance errors and a loss of expertise in the supply chain due to job cuts have also raised concerns.
