Air New Zealand says aircraft grounded by a global software fault are expected to be back in service by this evening.

Yesterday, Kiwi travellers faced long delays at airports after an international recall notice was issued for Airbus A320 planes needing a software update.

Air New Zealand Chief Safety and Risk Officer Nathan McGraw said he expects all affected aircraft to be updated and returned to service by this evening.

“The airline is well underway with the required software updates across our A320 fleet,” McGraw said.

He said the airline anticipated a total of around 20 cancellations across the weekend, but schedules should return to normal for Monday.

“Customers travelling today should continue to check the Air NZ app or website for the latest information on their flight.”

McGraw said the airline wanted to provide affected customers with “additional flexibility”.

“Those travelling on an affected A320 route up to and including Tuesday 2 December may make one free change within seven days of their original travel date, hold the value of their fare in credit for twelve months, or request a refund, including for non-refundable fares,” he said.

McGraw extended his gratitude to the “significant efforts of [Air NZ’s] engineering and operations team”.

Both Air New Zealand and Jetstar, the country’s two main domestic airlines, grounded planes while responding to the situation on Saturday.

Large queues at Auckland Airport after flights were cancelled because of a global Airbus A320 warning. Photo / Katie Harris

An NZ Herald journalist who was scheduled to fly with Jetstar yesterday morning described scenes of “chaos” at Auckland Airport.

They said there was a “stampede” when travellers were told their flight was cancelled and that they’d need to rebook downstairs.

“We were waiting for flights that had already been delayed because of this global issue. There were no seats available, and people were scattered across the floor.

“We were hopeful that maybe we’d start boarding soon, and then this packed waiting room with two flights, one to Queenstown and one to Christchurch, we just heard over the intercom that both the flights had been cancelled and that everyone had to go downstairs and rebook,” said the traveller.

Hundreds of travellers faced long delays at Auckland airport after a global issue with Airbus A320's. Photo / NZ Herald

Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury acknowledged the global software “has been causing significant logistical challenges and delays” but added its operators were working around the clock to ensure the required updates “are deployed as swiftly as possible to get planes back in the sky”.

“I want to sincerely apologise to our airline customers and passengers who are impacted now. But we consider that nothing is more important than safety,” he wrote on LinkedIn.

Airbus warned of impending disruption

Airbus on Friday warned of potential travel disruption as it upgraded some 6000 operational A320 aircraft, after an incident on a JetBlue flight last month.

The European plane-maker on Friday instructed its clients to take “immediate precautionary action” after evaluating the incident.

“Intense solar radiation may corrupt data critical to the functioning of flight controls,” Airbus stated, adding that “a significant number of A320 Family aircraft currently in-service” may be affected.

The faulty software, the Elevator and Aileron Computer (ELAC), is made by aerospace and defence giant Thales.

“Airbus acknowledges these recommendations will lead to operational disruptions to passengers and customers,” it said, apologising for the inconvenience.

On October 30, a JetBlue-operated A320 aircraft encountered an in-flight control issue due to a computer malfunction.

The plane suddenly nosedived as it travelled between Cancun in Mexico and Newark in the United States, and the pilots had to land the plane in Tampa, Florida.

US media quoted local firefighters saying that some passengers were injured.

Produced since 1988, the A320 is the best-selling airplane globally, with Airbus selling 12,257 of the aircraft by the end of September compared with the sale of 12,254 Boeing 737s.

– Additional reporting Agence France-Presse