The country’s leading carriers are working round-the-clock to complete the industry-wide mandated software update on Airbus narrow-body jets by Sunday noon, aiming to prevent further flight cancellations that have affected thousands of passengers.

Acting Transportation Secretary Giovanni Lopez said local airlines only received the urgent airworthiness directive from the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), which oversees European jetmaker Airbus, at 1:00 am on Saturday, Nov. 29.

Lopez said this directive, which affected all airlines operating the A320 series of planes, forced Philippine Airlines (PAL), Cebu Pacific, and AirAsia Philippines to temporarily hold off operations of their A320 and A321 aircraft.

This has led to 78 flight cancellations and even more delays, affecting over 14,000 passengers and counting.

Lopez said proactive measures taken by airlines kept the overall impact on the aviation industry less substantial, noting that talks of such a directive began as early as Friday night.

“Once they received those notices, they already started working around the clock,” he said in a press briefing.

EASA placed the global air travel industry on high alert after it required airlines to address a flaw in the flight control system of A320 jets, following an incident last month that left several passengers hurt after a sudden drop in altitude.

In its investigation, Airbus found that solar flares could corrupt data critical to flight control.

Globally, it is estimated that repairs would cover some 6,000 jets.

In the country, the Air Carriers Association of the Philippines (ACAP) said 75 aircraft are affected by the sweeping recall.

By Saturday noon, however, nearly half of the aircraft in question are now ready to serve passengers again.

“We would like to reassure the public that we have taken and are continuing to take all proactive measures to ensure the safety of your flights,” said ACAP Executive Director Jose Perez de Tagle, whose group represents the country’s three major airlines and their affiliates.

“That's the bottom line for all the airlines, we have to ensure safety even if it means undertaking some cancellations and of course a series of delays which are the knock-on or domino effect over the next day or so,” he added.

Perez said other Airbus A320 and A321 jets, wide-body A330s, A350s, Boeing 777s, and turboprop jets were not impacted by the EASA directive.

Lopez also noted that even if the aircraft has already completed the software repair, it must first undergo an airworthiness check to confirm its compliance with the mandate.

“So that our worries are gone because we’ve already updated the software, and so there won’t be any problems once we’re in the air,” said Lopez.

PAL, the country’s flag carrier, said 11 of its 28 affected narrowbody jets have already received the software update, with the rest expected to be fully updated within 22 hours.

In a statement, PAL said it is actively working to minimize the impact of the repair on the travel plans of its passengers. The airline said affected passengers may rebook their ticket, convert it to travel credits, or request a refund.

Of its 45 affected aircraft, Cebu Pacific reported that 19 have already undergone the necessary update, with the remaining jets scheduled to be completed by Sunday noon.

Cebu Pacific, the country’s largest carrier by fleet size, said it has deployed additional staff to assist passengers and offered flexible options, including free rebooking and travel fund conversion.

Only one of Air Asia’s aircraft was affected and it has since been updated and returned to normal operations.

“Our people are working with urgency and care to manage all concerns and provide support to all affected guests,” said AirAsia Philippines chief executive officer (CEO) Suresh Bangah.