Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) remains quiet on social media about the issues causing major delays, resulting in passengers and airlines changing travel plans.
As of Wednesday morning, flight tracking website FlightAware says that in the last 24 hours, 150 flights have been canceled at EWR. That is a 23% drop compared to the same week in 2023, according to the site.
On the other hand, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and U.S. Department of Transportation’s Secretary Sean Duffy have been quite vocal about what they believe the causes of the delays and cancellations are. They attribute the meltdown that has occurred for about two weeks to four primary issues.
NEWARK AIRPORT HIT WITH NEW DELAYS, OUTAGE HEARD ON AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL AUDIO
1. STAFFING ISSUES
Following a brief radar and radio communications loss with planes on April 28, a statement from the FAA to FOX Business said, “Some controllers at the Philadelphia TRACON who work Newark arrivals and departures have taken time off to recover from the stress of multiple recent outages.”
“While we cannot quickly replace them due to this highly specialized profession, we continue to train controllers who will eventually be assigned to this busy airspace,” the statement said.
The National Air Traffic Controller’s Union told FOX 5 New York that the air traffic controllers involved in the 90-second radar and communications loss were “so traumatized” that they are now on leave, which could last up to 45 days.
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2. CONSTRUCTION
Only one runway is currently operating at EWR, an FAA spokesperson told FOX Business on Tuesday.
It is closed due to a $121 million rehabilitation construction project until mid-June, FOX 5 reports.
3. WEATHER
Low ceilings, which are cloud layers close to the ground that impact visibility in aviation, have also led to flight delays and cancellations at EWR, local TV station PIX 11 reported.
There is about a 15% chance of showers on Wednesday in the New York City metro area, according to FOX 5 New York.
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4. OLD TECHNOLOGY
Duffy has frequently highlighted that air traffic controllers across the U.S. are using old technology. He said on X Tuesday that the previous White House administration knew of the issues and did nothing.
“Biden and Buttigieg celebrated their infrastructure bill. 1.2 TRILLION dollars. The largest infrastructure package known to man,” Duffy posted to X Tuesday afternoon.
“They claimed it was going to change America. They spent less than 1 percent of the money on fixing our air traffic control system. They ignored the warnings. Instead, they spent their time injecting social justice and climate equity crap into everything,” he concluded.
The FAA called the system “antiquated,” but that the agency is “working to ensure the current telecommunications equipment is more reliable in the New York area by establishing a more resilient and redundant configuration with the local exchange carriers.”
Reuters contributed to this report.
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