All Airbus A380 superjumbos will be checked for cracks in their wings after the airline Qantas discovered dozens of tiny fractures during a maintenance inspection.
The Australian carrier revealed workers on one of its A380s found 36 small fissures in the "wing rib feet", the metal brackets that connect the wing's ribs to its skin.
The airline temporarily grounded the affected jet only, as the fractures posed no threat to safety.
The jet had hit severe turbulence on a flight from London to Singapore last month.
Qantas said the cracks were not related to the turbulence, but had been linked to an Airbus manufacturing issue.
Now, the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) has called for checks on the entire fleet of Airbus A380 superjumbo jets.
Last month Europe's air safety authority ordered safety checks be carried out on a number of A380 planes after cracks were found inside the British-made wings.
The 68 planes will not be grounded, but "a detailed visual inspection" of all the superjumbos' wing rib feet will be carried out.
EASA spokesman Dominique Fouda the authority was "working with Airbus on a long-term fix that should be ready by the summer".
Cracks have previously been found in the wings of Singapore Airlines, Emirates and Air France planes.
Qantas said it was working to repair the cracks in its A380 and it expected the aircraft to be back in the air within a week.
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