Ahead of formally issuing an Airworthiness Directive (AD) the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) has set out inspection procedures for Airbus A320 family-aircraft caught up in the faulty panel flaw.
On December 17, 2025, EASA published documents regarding A319, A320 and A321 aircraft that require forward fuselage skin panel checks following the panel issue coming to light.
EASA said the reason for the inspection was due to an Airbus supplier identifying a quality issue in production, resulting in “potential deviations from the specified thickness of various fuselage panels” delivered to the aircraft manufacturer.
“This condition, if not detected and corrected, in combination with certain repair conditions, could affect the structural integrity of the aeroplane,” said EASA.
As part of an Airbus Alert Operator Transmission (AOT) on December 16, 2025, inspection instructions for the affected panels were issued, but the EASA AD would legally enforce compliance.
The AD would require for each affected part a one-time general visual inspection and a full panel thickness measurement within six months of the effective date.
EASA said that if any crack is identified on an affected panel before the next flight, contact Airbus for approved repair instructions
Additionally, if any thickness out of the drawing tolerances is identified within 6 months after the AD effective date, then Airbus should be contacted for approved repair instructions.
According to Reuters, panels on 177 aircraft currently in service would be included within the inspection order and 451 in various stages of production at Airbus.
The panel issue arose in early December and led to Airbus trimming its delivery projections for the year from around 825 deliveries to 790.
EASA’s proposed AD will be closed for consultation on January 14, 2026.