"This story starts on October 30th, when flight 1230 operated by US airline JetBlue made an unplanned diversion to Florida's Tampa International Airport, interrupting its journey from Cancun to Newark. According to a US Federal Aviation Administration statement, "the crew experienced a flight control issue." At the time, CNN reported the plane experienced "a sudden drop in altitude" that caused injuries to around 15 passengers. ABC News reported "up to 20" injuries."
"An Airbus A320 aeroplane recently experienced an uncommanded and limited pitch down event. The autopilot remained engaged throughout the event, with a brief and limited loss of altitude, and the rest of the flight was uneventful. Preliminary technical assessment done by Airbus identified a malfunction of the affected ELAC as possible contributing factor. This condition, if not corrected, could lead in the worst-case scenario to an uncommanded elevator movement that may result in exceeding the aircraft's structural capability."
A JetBlue A320 diverted to Tampa on October 30 after a flight control issue and a sudden drop in altitude that injured about 15–20 passengers. Airbus later found that intense solar radiation may corrupt data critical to flight controls, potentially affecting the ELAC (elevator and aileron computer). EASA issued an Emergency Airworthiness Directive citing a possible ELAC malfunction that could cause uncommanded elevator movement and exceed structural limits. The autopilot remained engaged and the altitude loss was brief. Airlines worldwide are rolling back a recent software update powering A320s to mitigate the identified risk.
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