Nationwide power cuts across Spain and Portugal are threatening to force cancellation of swathes of services to and from the two countries, causing chaos for airlines. Electricity outages have been reported across the Iberian peninsula, stranding millions of people without power. National providers say they are working to restore services as soon as possible, in stages. A cause has not yet been identified. Data shows that across Spain and Portugal around 3,700 return services were scheduled to take place on 28 April. Most severely affected are Ryanair Group, with around 1,440 return services; Iberia, with 480; and TAP Air Portugal, with 400. EasyJet also has 272 return services planned, and Air Europa 146. For carriers based in the country, the vast majority of their global operations will be impacted. TAP has advised passengers not to travel to the airport until power services are restored. Air Europa says flights will operate "as airports allow" and that delays are expected. Spanish airport operator Aena says "some incidents are occurring at the airports" and that passengers should check with their airlines before travelling in. Aena's website also confirms widespread disruption.. All arrivals have been cancelled at Madrid-Barajas, Spain's busiest airport, and departures are heavily delayed. The danger for airlines is the longer the outage lasts, the more disruption will ricochet across the continent and further afield as crews and aircraft remain out of position. Outages that cause disruption and delays can be expensive for airlines. A failure by the UK airspace controller NATS in August 2023 led to the cancellation of around 1,500 flights, resulting in industry estimates of around £100 million ($134 million) in extra costs.

An equipment outage on 28 April at Newark Liberty airport in New Jersey is causing "residual delays" to flights. The airport says in an update posted at 19:29 local time that the disruption has been caused by an "earlier FAA equipment outage" without providing further details. Flight tracking data shows that almost two hours after the airport's latest update that it is still experiencing excessive delays. Newark is a key hub airport for United Airlines which has issued a travel waiver for passengers on impacted flights to and from the airport. "An FAA equipment malfunction caused a significant disruption at Newark Liberty Airport this afternoon, shutting down all flight operations. As the FAA fully restores its ability to manage air traffic control at Newark, we expect cancellations and delays for the rest of the day," it says in a post on X.

Former US Federal Aviation Administration head Mike Whitaker is to join Indian carrier IndiGo's board as an independent director, subject to regulatory and shareholder approval. Whitaker stepped down from his role as FAA administrator on 20 January, having announced in December that he would leave on the day of US president Donald Trump's second inauguration. He had been selected to lead the FAA by previous president Joe Biden and was confirmed by the US Senate on 23 October 2023. IndiGo managing director Rahul Bhatia states that Whitaker's "deep and varied industry and government experience will contribute significantly to having an effective and diverse board". He adds: "His focus on efficiency, operations [and] air safety as head of the FAA will reinforce IndiGo's longstanding focus on operating at the highest levels. Also, his extensive experience in international governmental affairs will be hugely instrumental as IndiGo continues its global expansion." Whitaker says he is "deeply honoured" to join the board of "the world's fastest-growing airline on its way to become a global aviation giant". Prior to leading the FAA, Whitaker was chief operating officer of electric air mobility vehicle manufacturer Supernal. He had previously served as deputy administrator of the FAA from 2013 to 2016.