Airbus has asked A330neo operators to check their aircraft for stray tools during routine maintenance, after a tool found in the horizontal tail plane of a jet in production halted deliveries of the type for two months.

The request follows an issue that surfaced in September 2026, when Airbus staff began inspecting every A330neo at its facilities over concerns relating to the horizontal tail plane. Reuters later reported that the problem came to light when a tool was discovered in the structure of an A330neo during a pre-delivery inspection.

According to Bloomberg, Airbus has contacted several airlines and asked them to carry out additional inspections during scheduled maintenance to determine whether any in-service aircraft are affected. The manufacturer has identified a specific number of A330neos built between 2021 and July 2026 for the extra checks.

"After having spotted an isolated finding in an aircraft in production, we are committed to discounting similar findings in aircraft currently in service," Airbus told Bloomberg. "We do not compromise on quality and safety."

The company said it is asking operators to perform the inspections during planned maintenance in anticipation that the checks may become mandatory. The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) has confirmed there is no immediate safety issue, Airbus said. By mid-November, EASA is expected to set a deadline for affected operators to complete the required inspections.

Delivery impact is measurable. Airbus delivered no A330neos in June or July 2026, according to the manufacturer's delivery data. A single aircraft went to Starlux Airlines in August. Before that, Airbus handed over nine A330neos across the year: none in January or February, three in March, two in April and four in May.

The gap matters for an program already carrying a modest delivery rate relative to Airbus's narrowbody output. Operators with A330neos scheduled for summer 2026 delivery faced slipped handovers, and the added airframe inspections will consume maintenance man-hours across the in-service fleet built since 2021 — costs that fall on airlines even though the root cause sits on the production line.

For now, the fleet continues to fly. EASA's position that no immediate safety risk exists means operators can fold the checks into existing maintenance windows rather than grounding aircraft. The open question is the inspection deadline the regulator sets in November, and whether findings across the 2021-to-July-2026 production span force a broader mandatory campaign that could weigh further on both in-service availability and Airbus's ability to clear the delivery backlog it built up over the summer.