JetBlue passengers aboard an Airbus A320 airplane are now suing Airbus for negligence after experiencing an “uncommanded loss of altitude” due to a software glitch .
Plummeted 100 Feet
Nadia Ramos, Ricardo Racines, and Natividad Martinez were aboard the JetBlue Flight 1230 from Cancun Mexico to Newark, New Jersey on October 30, 2025. An hour into their flight, the Airbus A320 “suddenly and unexpectedly pitched nose down resulting in a sudden and un-commanded loss of altitude.”
The plane plummeted approximately 100 feet, causing 18 passengers and four flight attendants to sustain minor injuries. The pilots then declared an emergency and diverted the flight to Tampa, Florida, where medical first responders met the aircraft.
Software Glitch
JetBlue initiated an investigation, given that the autopilot system was engaged throughout. Around a month later, Airbus experts established the cause of the software glitch.
On November 28, 2025, Airbus issued an alert to airlines operating the Airbus A320, warning that intense solar radiation could corrupt critical data in the Elevator and Aileron Computer (ELAC). ELAC is responsible for ensuring the elevators and ailerons operate correctly.
Because of this, the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) issued an Alert Operators Transmission (AOT) to make sure that airlines implement a software patch before allowing A320s to fly again.
The software patch was a rollback after discovering that solar radiation affecting ELAC was specific to the latest software update known as L104.
Lawsuit Against Airbus
Ramos, Racines, and Martinez are accusing Airbus of negligence due to the software glitch. According to them, neither EASA nor the French BEA aviation report mentioned solar radiation as the cause of the plane’s pitch-down movement.
The JetBlue passengers claim that Airbus and the ELAC manufacturer Thales failed to test the ELAC system. They called the software “defective in its design” and “unreasonably dangerous.”
In addition to Airbus, Ramos, Racines, and Martinez are suing JetBlue and Thales for negligence and strict product liability. Under the Montreal Convention, airlines are responsible for any injuries passengers sustain during international flights.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has not published a final report and the incident remains under investigation. Airbus, Thales, and JetBlue have not yet responded to the lawsuit.
