European regulators have warned that non-airworthy commercial engine parts stolen in Spain may be offered for sale on the open market. The parts were being sent for "mutilation" to prevent their further use, but a shipment consisting of 12 containers was "rerouted late January 2026 from its destination by a third party that impersonated the contracted mutilation provider", says the European Union Aviation Safety Agency, citing a report by Spanish regulator AESA. EASA says law enforcement agencies are "considering the scale and modus operandi" of the theft as part of their investigation. Three of the containers held "critical or life-limited parts", notes EASA. It stresses that the equipment has "not been mutilated". The regulator has identified 625 parts from engines spanning CFM International CFM56-5B/7Bs, International Aero Engines V2500s, Pratt & Whitney PW1100Gs and Rolls-Royce RB211-535E4s. EASA advises aircraft owners, operators and MRO providers to inspect their aircraft and inventories for suspect parts. Findings related to the equipment should be quarantined and reported to authorities, the regulator adds.

Cancellations of flights departing New York LaGuardia remain elevated following 22 March's fatal collision of an Air Canada Express MHIRJ CRJ900 and fire truck on runway 4. Flight AC8646 had departed Montreal, operated by Air Canada Express carrier Jazz Aviation. The accident at LaGuardia occurred at around 23:30 local time. Air Canada has confirmed that the aircraft was carrying 72 passengers and four crew members, and that the captain and first officer died in the accident. As of 25 March, four people who had been aboard the flight remain in hospital, says the carrier. Data shows that of 465 scheduled departures from LaGuardia on 22 March, seven were cancelled and one was assigned "unknown" status by Cirium, which applies this label to published flights that have not yet been officially cancelled but were not observed in flight. Airlines sometimes do not publish official cancellations for flights they do not operate. On 23 March, 60% of 495 scheduled departures at LaGuardia were cancelled amid a shutdown of the airport that continued until around 14:00. In addition to 295 cancelled departures, six flights were classified as unknown. On 24 March, 150 LaGuardia departures were cancelled, representing 30% of scheduled flights. Two flights that day were classified as unknown. Operations at LaGuardia have yet to return to normal. On 25 March, the US Federal Aviation Administration's air traffic control system command centre (ATCSCC) issued an alert that flights arriving at LaGuardia were delayed by an average of 4h 14min amid a "traffic management programme".

Additionally, the partial government shutdown that has led to a lapse in annual appropriations for the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has made operations at LaGuardia and at other US airports more chaotic than usual. Among DHS's operational components are the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the US Coast Guard, and US Citizenship and Immigration Services. On 15 March, trade group Airlines for America (A4A) sent an open letter co-signed by eight chief executives of US carriers to members of Congress pointing out that TSA officers had "just received $0 paychecks", adding: "Too many travellers are having to wait in extraordinarily long – and painfully slow – lines at checkpoints." A4A declared in the letter that "once again air travel is the political football amid another government shutdown". A shutdown of the US government that began on 1 October 2025 and ended 12 November impaired air traffic control and led to government-mandated flight cuts, costing US majors United, American and Delta combined an estimated $775 million in lost revenue.

India's cabinet has signed off on a Rs288 billion ($3.07 billion) extension to its regional connectivity scheme that will run to the 2035-36 fiscal year, which will fund some operations, plus airport upgrades and some helicopter and aircraft acquisitions. A statement from the Ministry of Civil Aviation shows that just over Rs100 billion is allocated for "viability gap funding" for operators on rewarded routes, which it says recognises " the need for longer market development". The largest allocation of Rs122 billion will fund capital expenditure to develop 100 airports "from existing unserved airstrips" over the next eight years, while a further Rs366 million will be allocated to developing 200 helipads over the same period. The Ministry adds that the scheme proposes to purchase two HAL Dhruv helicopters for Pawan Hans and two HAL Dornier Do228s for Alliance Air, but did not disclose the funding amount. Both Pawan Hans and Alliance Air are state-owned operators. Since the launch of the regional connectivity scheme, also known locally as UDAN, in October 2016, the Ministry says that 663 routes have been operationalised across 95 airports, helipads and water aerodromes. UDAN has been viewed as a key enabler for the growth of independent regional carriers in India, such as Fly91, Star Air and startup floatplane operator SkyHop Aviation. Avani Singh, SkyHop's chief executive and founder, says that the viability gap funding "is a significant step that will help make regional and emerging segments like seaplane operations more sustainable over the long term. "It will give operators, investors and lessors the confidence to invest and build connectivity to areas that have so far remained out of reach."