The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has ordered operators of nearly 2,000 Airbus A320 family aircraft in the US to perform more frequent inspections of certain “unsafe” door components.
On Tuesday (December 9), the agency issued an updated airworthiness directive (AD) requiring ordering operators to check for cracks in door fittings and surrounding fuselage areas, particularly at frame 68.
The FAA said the inspections aim to prevent reduced structural integrity of the fuselage, which could compromise flight safety.
The updated AD — which takes effect on January 13, 2026 — was issued following prior reports from the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) on the “unsafe condition” of these components.
Airlines affected by the directive must ensure the inspections are completed in accordance with the revised schedule to maintain the airworthiness of their fleets.
The FAA’s directive comes only one week after Airbus was forced to implement an emergency software update across more than 6,000 A320 aircraft due to fears of solar radiation damage.
Last week, Airbus said an examination of an incident in October 2025, when a JetBlue flight suddenly lost altitude due to a flight control failure, was due to solar radiation damage. The incident injured at least 15 people.
For the FAA and other regulators, aircraft doors, bolts, and panels have become a key concern in the wake of the Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 incident in January last year, when a fuselage plug blew out of an airborne Boeing 737 MAX 9.
The incident led to investigations and findings of weak controls and oversight in Boeing’s factories, followed by a cap on production of new MAX jets.