What happened
On October 30, 2025, at 1748 UTC, a JetBlue Airways Corp flight operating an Airbus A320-232, registration N605JB, experienced a pitch excursion while cruising at 35,000 feet. The aircraft was flying from Cancun International Airport (MMUN) to Newark Liberty International Airport (KEWR) over the Gulf of America. The flight was operating in smooth air and clear weather (VMC) with visibility of 11.5 statute miles and winds of 243/101kt.
The excursion caused the aircraft to lose approximately 100 feet of altitude. The flight crew diverted the aircraft to Tampa International Airport (KTPA) in Tampa, Florida, where the remainder of the flight proceeded without further incident. The event resulted in 22 minor injuries, involving four flight attendants and 18 passengers.
The investigation
The NTSB opened an investigation on October 31, 2025. Investigators sent the flight data recorder (FDR) and cockpit voice recorder (CVR) to the NTSB Vehicle Recorder Laboratory in Washington, D.C. for data retrieval. To examine the flight control system, the elevator and aileron computers (ELACs) were sent to Thales in Chatellerault, France.
Additional components from the aircraft were sent to manufacturers for functional testing and data recovery. A preliminary technical assessment of the flight control system architecture by Airbus identified a potential concern regarding ELAC software design. Following this finding, Airbus released several revisions of Alert Operators Transmission (AOT) A27N022-25. Consequently, the EASA and FAA issued Emergency Airworthiness Directives (EAD) on November 28, 2025, regarding this issue.