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The entire fleet of A380 superjumbos is to be checked for cracks on their wings after orders from the European safety regulator.

Preliminary inspections of the busiest 20 A380 planes were carried out last month and have revealed cracks on most of the aircraft.

The European Aviation Safety Agency is now set to issue a new directive later today that all 68 A380 planes are inspected.

Airbus, the manufacturer of the plane, insists the A380 is still safe to fly and has issued airlines with instructions of how to repair the fault.

However, Australian airline Qantas has grounded one of its planes for around a week in order to fix the cracks.

The wings for the Airbus A380 are made at the company’s British factory in Broughton, Wales.

The cracks have been discovered in an L–shaped bracket which connects the wing’s exterior to the internal “rib” structure. Airbus says they are a manufacturing issue.

So far, inspections have been visual but EASA’s revised directive will require A380 operators to check for cracks using non-destructive techniques involving special equipment that detects cracks using high-frequency electrical currents.

The A380 is the world’s largest passenger jet and cost €12bn (£10bn) to develop. Airlines who have already taken delivery of the plane include Singapore Airlines, Emirates, Qantas and Lufthansa.

However, EASA last month ordered inspections of A380s that had flown more than 1300 flights after Qantas and Singapore Airlines identified small cracks in the wings of planes.

Philippa Oldham, head of transport at the Institution of Mechanical Engineers said:

“It is welcome that the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) is calling for checks on all Airbus A380 as safety has to be the biggest priority for all airlines.

“It is important to note that these cracks are very small and will be monitored by the airlines. They are unlikely to affect aircraft operation.

“Airlines approved by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) have very strict regulations and require there to be rigorous inspection procedures so an aircraft would not be allowed to fly unless it was deemed to be fully airworthy by the authority or their delegates.”