Yakovlev has completed a first flight with a Superjet 100 test aircraft fitted with Russian-made systems to replace equipment previously supplied by Western manufacturers. The new equipment comprises around 40 systems and components across the regional aircraft's avionics, landing gear, auxiliary power unit, integrated control system, power supply, fire protection and air conditioning equipment. This was developed under a programme launched in 2019 "to increase resilience of the economy in the face of sanctions", says the Russian ministry for industry and trade. It notes that the new equipment was developed by aircraft manufacturing and electronic industries that are part of state corporation Rostec's "control loop". The first flight from the assembly line in Komsomolsk-on-Amur was completed on 29 August with a prototype fitted with PowerJet SaM146 engines – the twinjet's original powerplant, previously jointly produced by Russian manufacturer NPO Saturn and Safran – "in order to speed up the test programme on the first prototype", the ministry says. But it adds that a second prototype powered by domestically produced PD-8 engines will begin flight tests "soon", noting that the engine is currently undergoing bench and flight trials on an Ilyushin Il-76LL testbed. During the 54min first flight with the initial domestic Superjet prototype, its crew of two pilots and a flight-test engineer assessed the aircraft's general handling at speeds up to 185kt and altitudes up to 9,800ft. This included a simulated landing at altitude, a landing approach and go-around manoeuvre, and a check of the aircraft's automatic pressure control system. "The stable operation of all domestic systems, the controllability and stability of the aircraft in the air were confirmed," the ministry says. Yuri Slyusar, general director of Yakovlev parent United Aircraft (UAC), describes the domestically sourced Superjet as a "virtually new aircraft" and states: "This is the best demonstration of the technological independence of our country. We proved, first of all to ourselves, that we can develop and produce modern civil aircraft on our own, without the involvement of imported technologies. The next ambitious tasks are to certify the aircraft in a completely Russian appearance and start serial deliveries." UAC deputy general director civil aviation and Yakovlev general director Andrey Boginsky views the new Superjet variant as "embodiment of the advanced developments" of Russia's aviation sector. He acknowledges development, production and operational experience from the Superjet programme under its previous configuration, but stresses the development time for the new equipment. "Four years have passed from the start of the preliminary design to the first flight – given the amount of design work, this is close to a record time, at the level of the world's leading manufacturers." In its original iteration, the Superjet completed its first flight in 2008 and entered service with now-defunct Armenian carrier Armavia. Fleets data lists 163 Superjets as being in service and another 56 in storage. Russian carriers Azimuth Airlines, IrAero, Red Wings Airlines, Aeroflot subsidiary Rossiya Airlines, Yakutia Airlines, Yamal Airlines and an aviation arm of energy supplier Gazprom are among the type's largest operators. UAC's backlog for the Superjet comprises 74 orders, including 47 from Red Wings, eight from Azimuth, eight from eastern Russian carrier Aurora, five from Ilyushin Finance and four from Aeroflot Group.

The recent outage at UK air traffic control provider NATS week will likely have cost the airline industry up to £100 million ($127 million), IATA director general Willie Walsh has estimated. He said on the BBC's Today programme that the problems had resulted in "very considerable" outgoings for carriers as they were required to cover expenses for customers stranded because of delays and cancellations. "I would imagine at an industry level we are getting close to £100 million of additional costs that airlines have encountered as a result of this failure," he says. Speaking on the same programme, NATS' chief executive Martin Rolfe said a single piece of incorrect data it received in a flightplan had caused its primary and backup systems to fail, forcing services to be processed manually. He adds that measures have already been taken to ensure this situation does not repeat and that a preliminary report on the problem, overseen by the Civil Aviation Authority, will be sent to the government early in September. Walsh complains that the situation is "staggering", saying NATS' systems should reject faulty data instead of allowing it to impact its wider operations. "That explanation [from NATS] doesn't stand up from what I know of these systems," he says. "There are a lot of questions that NATS has to answer." Walsh also argues that, post-Brexit, the UK should reform EU261 legislation which forces airlines to compensate passengers for disruption, instead adopting a more flexible system that direct claims to the part of the industry responsible for causing delays. The latest data shows that disruption continues to ripple from the outage on 28 August, although at a much reduced level. At 09:00, 30 services departing UK airports on 30 August and 34 arriving had been cancelled, in each case around 1% of the total.

The US Department of Transportation has fined American Airlines $4.1 million for violating its rule prohibiting tarmac delays of three hours or more on domestic flights without providing passengers an opportunity to leave the delayed aircraft. The department finds that between 2018 and 2021 the US major "kept dozens of flights stuck on the tarmac for long periods of time without letting passengers off". The DOT notes that American's fine is its largest ever issued for tarmac-delay violations. "This is the latest action in our continued drive to enforce the rights of airline passengers,” US Transportation secretary Pete Buttigieg states. "Whether the issue is extreme tarmac delays or problems getting refunds, DOT will continue to protect consumers and hold airlines accountable." American says that "while these delays were the result of exceptional weather events, the flights represent a very small number of the 7.7 million flights during this time period". The Fort Worth-based carrier adds: "We have since apologised to the impacted customers and regret any inconvenience caused."