An Amtrak construction crew accidentally cut a fiber-optic line in New Jersey, triggering a telecommunications outage that forced the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to pause flights across parts of the Northeast, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said Monday afternoon.
“An Amtrak construction crew accidentally cut into a fiber line in New Jersey which caused a telecom outage and forced FAA to pause flights in the Northeast,” Duffy wrote on X.
Duffy said flights were resuming at LaGuardia Airport (LGA) and Philadelphia International Airport (PHL), while flights into Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR), John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) and Teterboro Airport (TEB) remained paused.
“This incident underscores the need for additional funding to modernize aging infrastructure and prevent disruptions like this in the future,” he said.
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As of 3:07 p.m. ET, the FAA’s website showed active ground stops at EWR and TEB, while JFK, LGA and PHL were operating under ground delays related to the equipment outage.
Earlier Monday, the FAA told Fox News it was pausing flights into Philadelphia International, Teterboro and Newark Liberty International airports due to “issues with some frequencies at Philadelphia TRACON.”
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FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said Philadelphia TRACON lost its primary circuit, and when controllers switched to a backup system, they discovered a broken fiber-optic cable.
Speaking to reporters earlier Monday, Duffy said “these are issues that aren’t new to us.”
“We know these problems can happen. We know these cuts can happen,” Duffy said, adding that the department has been working to upgrade FAA equipment and its telecom architecture.
“As we work through all the new equipment, all the new architecture of our telecom, which is fans, it all takes money. That’s why we have a holistic view of everything, including how we rework our telecom,” Duffy said.
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Duffy said the work is being done before the department has secured all the necessary money, adding that “when we get the cash” the department will be able to hasten progress.
“But this is not shocking,” Duffy said of the equipment outage.
The FAA could not immediately be reached by FOX Business Monday afternoon for additional comment.
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