Newark Airport in Chaos: 19-Minute Delays, Staff Shortages, and Equipment Failures!

2025-05-12 18:01:21.17

Delays continue to affect flights at Newark Liberty International Airport, averaging about 19 minutes at 9 a.m. on Monday, according to the FAA. For two weeks, short staffing at an air traffic control facility in Philadelphia, which handles flights to and from Newark, has caused delays. At least five controllers there took 45 days of trauma leave after losing radar and radio communication on April 28. The facility, PHL TRACON Area C, also saw outages of air traffic control systems early Friday morning and again on Sunday. Friday's outage lasted 90 seconds, while Sunday's "telecommunications issue" stopped Newark-bound flights for about 45 minutes. Since November, there have been at least four outages at PHL TRACON Area C. A pilot expressed support for better equipment and staffing on Sunday. Other FAA facilities are also experiencing problems; Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport saw delays due to runway equipment issues, affecting 1,337 flights (55%), and Austin, Texas, saw 145 flights (nearly 20%) delayed due to staffing shortages.