South African Airways has warned of a new wave of industrial action after pilots’ unions announced a "work-to-rule" regime from 19 March. The carrier says it was informed of the decision by the SAA Pilots Association (SAAPA) and National Transport Movement (NTM) Pilot Forum on 18 March. SAA says it has "deep regret" over the decision, which follows years of negotiations over pay and conditions. SAA's pilots last went on strike on 5 December, suspending the action four days later after successful negotiations about some pay conditions and time off. The flag carrier then made a final offer to pilots on 5 March which it describes as "comprehensive and favourable", but which has not been welcomed by unions. "We have implemented strong contingency measures to minimise the impact of this industrial action," says group chief executive John Lamola. "Our focus remains on ensuring uninterrupted service and providing real-time updates on flight statuses to all stakeholders." He adds that the Johannesburg-based carrier continues to navigate "significant financial pressures" and is operating within a "challenging environment" of elevated fuel prices, a weak local currency, intense competition, and ongoing productivity and labour cost hurdles. "We consider our offer to the pilots both fair and generous, especially given the financial challenges the airline continues to face. SAA remains dedicated to reaching an amicable resolution through ongoing negotiations and open communication with the pilot body and all stakeholders," adds Lamola.

Boeing expects to complete this summer of this year rework activities for a fleet of 737s that were built before 2023 and couldn't be delivered because of manufacturing issues. The US airframer's finance chief, Brian West, said at the Bank of America Global Industrials Conference on 19 March that Boeing had begun to withdraw staff from what it terms a "shadow factory", to bring the jets to a required production standard for delivery, and return employees to the company's single-aisle assembly facility in Renton, Washington. "We expect that shadow factory to be shut down… this summer and those airplanes will be delivered to our customers," West says. At the end March 2024, Boeing had 205 undelivered 737s and 60 787s in its inventory, West said in April. That single-aisle inventory included around 110 Max 8s built prior to 2023, most of which were for customers in China and India. Additionally, it included around 35 jets of the in-development Max 7 and 10 variants, plus some 60 affected by supply-chain delays. West now says that a 787 shadow factory at Boeing's Everett facility has been shut down and staff previously seconded to that rework operation are now back in regular manufacturing operations. He notes, however, that deliveries of reworked Dreamliners are still ongoing and will continue "a little bit into next year". The lag between rework activities and delivery is "mostly because of customer fleet planning requirements", he says. Meanwhile production at Boeing's 787 assembly line in Charleston, South Carolina is in "pretty good shape", West says. "They [delivered] nine 787s in the month of December and were just hitting five per month on the production line [at the end of 2025]. They are picking right up where they left off." Boeing delivered four Dreamliners in January, and five in February. Output in March "will probably look like February". While 787 production in 2025 had been particularly affected by supply shortages of heat exchangers and seats, West asserts the situation is now "much quieter in terms of those constraints [and] feels much more stable". "We are demonstrating the stability and can't wait [to] get to seven [787s] per month later in the year." Back in Renton, all three 737 assembly lines are in operation. "We have plenty of inventory, and we expect some nice rate ramps this year,” West says, noting that supply of fuselages from Spirit AeroSystems and CFM International Leap-B engines "are no constraints". Boeing's delivery of 40 Max jets in January was "strong" and 31 in February "solid", in his view. "March is going to look more or less in line with February. So, we're making good progress." Boeing has a target of reaching a limit of 38 Max jets per month later this year, and agreeing with the US Federal Aviation Administration to lift that production cap. Earlier during the interview, West said that measures aimed at improving quality and safety and introduced after the Alaska Airlines Max 9 accident in January 2024 had since become established in operation and that training initiatives were "starting to show a real dividend". "That is really driving stability," West says, noting the FAA's access to data about Boeing's performance in terms of aircraft rework, quality escapes, travelled work, supplier shortages and training. "All that is going really well," he asserts.

Airbus is investigating corrosion findings on in-service A220s in an effort to find a solution for the issue. Corrosion has been detected during maintenance on "a limited population of A220s on a limited number of parts on the aircraft", the European airframer says. "Regular maintenance checks are scheduled to ensure it [corrosion] is captured early and the right corrective actions are put in place in a timely manner to mitigate the situation," the manufacturer adds, without specifying affected parts or areas. "We are currently investigating the situation, and working with our customers and suppliers to identify and implement final corrective actions," Airbus saying, asserting that "the A220 fleet’s airworthiness remains intact." Transport Canada tells Cirium that it has received reports from operators about corrosion on seat tracks. "Reports indicated that the corrosion was found during normal maintenance tasks," the regulator says, adding that it is "closely following this matter and collaborating with [Airbus Canada], as they investigate these reports, with further actions to be determined based on the findings". The regulator notes: "Corrosion can be detected during regular maintenance inspections [and] there are established maintenance procedures to manage those events." Transport Canada is the lead certification authority for the A220. Fleets data lists 320 A220s in service, 88 in storage and another 504 on order.