Newark Liberty International Airport suffered another operations breakdown on Friday when the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reported a failure of radar and communications early today. The incident was the second such disruption in just over a week and has rekindled concerns about air traffic control capacity at one of the nation’s busiest airports.
According to the FAA, the latest failure occurred at 3:55 a.m. ET and lasted approximately 90 seconds. It impacted the Philadelphia TRACON Area C facility responsible for guiding aircraft in and out of Newark’s airspace. Although brief, the outage again brought the airport’s operations to a standstill, contributing to mounting delays and cancellations.
Controllers left in the dark — Again
Live audio from LiveATC.net captured the tense moments as air controllers responded to the outage. One controller told a FedEx pilot, “Our scopes just went black again.” Another asked a private aircraft to stay at or above 3,000 feet as a precaution against further failure.
In a statement, the FAA confirmed the disruption and blamed it on telecom problems such as those that were reported last week. “The outage was due to telecom and software issues, and communications have since been restored,” the agency said.
White house and lawmakers react
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt addressed the issue Friday, noting that although there was a glitch, operations restarted normally within a brief period, and “there was no operational impact.” In her view, the Department of Transportation and the FAA are “working to address the technical issues” and will be installing additional fiber connections between Newark and Philadelphia by the end of summer.
Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.) was exasperated in remarks at Newark airport, calling the outage “big news” and pointing out that it was the second in a matter of days. “People who fly have had it with delays,” he said. “This is a key economic hub airport. Twenty percent of America’s GDP goes through here.”
Staffing and infrastructure problems pile up
Gottheimer blamed chronic staffing shortages and outdated infrastructure as root causes of Newark’s frequent disruptions. “The airport lacks the FAA tower staffing levels, modern technology, and infrastructure we need,” he said, adding that the current runway construction only compounds the chaos.
He called for action immediately: “We must get more air traffic controllers to this understaffed region and give them whatever it takes—bonuses, overtime—to get them here.”
Airlines forced to cut flights
United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby revealed that the meltdown last week led to “dozens of diverted flights, hundreds of delays and cancellations, and thousands of disrupted customer plans.” Consequently, United is cutting 35 daily round-trip flights from its Newark schedule.
“This is disappointing but necessary,” Kirby said, noting that FAA staffing issues offer “no short-term resolution.”
American Airlines also acknowledged the problem, stating that the delays serve to underscore the urgency to modernize the nation’s air traffic control system.
A system in crisis
As frequent breakdowns, chronic staffing problems, and mounting customer anger continue to plague Newark Liberty International Airport, it is increasingly seen as an emblem of larger troubles in the U.S. aviation network. Barring immediate action, airlines and passengers alike may be in for more turbulence well beyond the runway.
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