- The Federal Aviation Administration is the Federal Aviation Administration Newark Liberty International Airport’s arrivals and departing traffic is slowed.
- The agency cited runway problems, technical issues and a lack of staff at the air traffic control center.
- Several airlines offer free change fees, or allow passengers to fly out of airports nearby.
Newark Liberty International Airport is a busy airport, so travelers may need to bring extra patience.
Travelers have been experiencing hours-long delays and other hardships as FAA staffing levels, runway construction, and technical issues have thrown a serious wrench into operations.
The FAA is slowing the arrivals and departures of aircraft at Newark Liberty International Airport, due to construction on the runway at Newark. Staffing and technology problems at Philadelphia TRACON are also contributing factors. This was stated by an FAA representative in a release obtained from Travel + Leisure.
In order to resolve the travel issues, FAA and Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy instructed agencies and staff to implement backup systems and to increase the number of controllers.
The FAA released a press release saying that it was taking immediate action to improve reliability at Newark Liberty International Airport. “This includes improving air traffic control staffing and accelerating the technological and logistical improvement.”
Airlines are waiving change fees and waivers for passengers who have upcoming flights. United Airlines, for example, is waiving change fees There are fare differences between flights leaving Newark on May 6-17. Subscribe to flight notifications, and check flight statuses prior to arriving at the airport. United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby released a recent statement regarding the conditions in Newark.
These challenges are nothing new for Newark. United has been urging the U.S. government for *years* to use its authority to effectively limit the number of flights to what the airport can realistically handle,” Kirby said in a letter Posted on May 2. United, and our customers, are now facing the consequences of past failures to make these changes.
United Airlines’ flight waiver option also allows passengers to book at nearby airports such as LaGuardia Airport (LGA) in New York City and Philadelphia International Airport (PHL)—something you may want to consider doing if you can’t wait around.
Kirby released a statement regarding safety on 7 May. “First, and most importantly: All flights into and out of EWR have been deemed safe. When there are FAA issues—technology outages, staffing shortages, etc.—the FAA requires all airlines to slow down aircraft and/or cancel flights to maintain the highest levels of safety,” wrote Kirby. “We are also doing our part to ensure safety. As you all know, our pilots have thousands of hours of flight experience and supplement that with regular simulator training – we also have procedures that our pilots follow to re-establish communication if controllers lose radio contact to navigate the airplane safely to its destination. “In short, neither United nor the FAA will compromise on safety.”
