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FAA Seeks Cap on Newark Airport Flights After Airline Talks

The agency has proposed limiting the airport to 28 landings and 28 takeoffs per hour during runway work set to end by June 15.
Aldgra Fredly
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Aldgra Fredly
Published: 5/17/2025, 11:26:51 AM EDT
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The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced on May 16 a proposal to temporarily limit the number of flights per hour at the Newark, New Jersey, airport following meetings with major airlines.

The FAA held several rounds of individual meetings with air carriers during the week of May 11–17 to discuss flight scheduling reductions as the airport grappled with equipment outages, runway construction, and staffing shortages.

Air carriers that participated in the talks included United Airlines, Delta Air Lines, JetBlue Airways, American Airlines, Alaska Airlines, Spirit Airlines, and Allegiant Air, according to the FAA.

The agency has proposed limiting Newark Liberty International Airport to 28 landings and 28 takeoffs—totaling 56 flights—per hour during a runway construction period that is expected to conclude by June 15.

Outside the construction period, the FAA proposed capping arrival and departure rates at 34 each per hour, for a total of 68 flights per hour, until Oct. 25, 2025. A final decision on the flight scheduling reductions will be made after the public comment period ends on May 28, according to the FAA.

The FAA told The Epoch Times by email that it intends to add three new high-bandwidth telecommunications connections and replace existing copper telecommunication lines with fiber-optic technology to ensure greater bandwidth.

The agency stated that a temporary backup system will be deployed to the Philadelphia Terminal Radar Approach Control (TRACON) during the switch to the fiber-optic network. The agency also plans to increase air traffic controller staffing, according to its statement.

According to the agency, the proposal will help “reduce overscheduling, flight delays, and cancellations to an acceptable level” at the airport.

The FAA slowed air traffic in and out of Newark following an April 28 incident in which air traffic control lost all contact with planes for 30 seconds; the incident led some controllers to take trauma leave. Two additional incidents involving air traffic equipment failures occurred at the airport on May 9 and May 11.
In a proposal document filed in the Federal Register on May 14, the agency stated that the Newark airport “clearly is unable to handle the current level of scheduled operations.”
United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby said on May 7 that he was informed by the FAA that Newark could handle only 77 flights per hour during peak periods, but airlines schedules often exceed that number.

“This math doesn’t work. Especially when there is weather, staffing issues or technology breakdowns—the airspace, taxiways, and runways get backed up and gridlock occurs,” Kirby stated.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said on May 12 that he would request an investigation into the Biden administration’s 2024 decision to reassign control of the Newark-area airspace sector from the New York Terminal Radar Approach Control (TRACON) to the Philadelphia TRACON, which he said he believes has led to the recent air traffic control equipment outages at Newark.

The move was intended to address staffing issues at the New York facility, but Duffy said it was dangerous because the Philadelphia TRACON has to be fed data from New York through old copper data lines, which were already vulnerable.

Duffy said the FAA implemented a software patch to fix the problem and replaced copper communication lines with fiber optics at Newark, John F. Kennedy International Airport, and LaGuardia Airport, but he said subsequent testing will likely take up to two weeks before the FAA can “flip the switch and make them live.”

Reuters and Jacob Burg contributed to this report.
From The Epoch Times