Airbus must replace certain landing gear doors, not just inspect them

The US aviation regulator is tightening rules for certain Airbus planes. Instead of just inspecting main landing gear doors, airlines will now have to replace them if they are the affected type.

This change means airlines can no longer defer a known safety issue with repeated inspections. It forces a permanent fix for a specific part on a widely used family of aircraft. This shifts the cost from ongoing maintenance to a one-time replacement.