MUMBAI: The core problem that led to the grounding of the Boeing 737 MAX aircraft worldwide has surfaced on the Airbus 320Neo as well. Both these aircraft have a tendency to pitch the nose up excessively to an unsafe degree during certain stages of flight.
The big difference, though, is that unlike Boeing 737 MAX, A320Neo has never had an excessive pitch problem during flights. The problem came up recently only during laboratory testing carried out by the European aircraft manufacturer. But a wary European Union aviation regulator, which had certified the A320Neo safe to fly, has issued an interim directive asking airlines to load the A320Neo in such a manner that the tail-end stays comparatively lighter.
This is the reason why airlines such as Lufthansa and British Airways have recently begun to leave the last row of six seats vacant on their A320Neo. Unlike the European regulator, the Indian aviation regulator hasn’t put out a directive in public yet. But to comply with the European regulator’s directive, Indian carriers have begun to leave the cargo compartment closest to the tail empty, director general of civil aviation Arun Kumar told TOI on Tuesday.
On July 31, European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) issued an airworthiness directive, applicable to all A320Neo aircraft.