As Newark Airport delays stretch into another week, Schumer calls for investigation into FAA
5. May 2025
The disruptions at Newark Liberty International Airport continue with delays and cancellations, after more than 500 flights were impacted Sunday. Hundreds more delays and cancelations were reported Monday.
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy said on social media over the weekend the issues are “completely and utterly unacceptable.”
Some are beginning to wonder if the airport will be able to handle the high volume of flights in the summer months ahead.
“The FAA is really a mess,” Schumer says
“To say that there is just minor turbulence at Newark Airport and the FAA would be the understatement of the year. We’re here because the FAA is really a mess. This mess needs a real forensic look, a deep look into it,” Sen. Chuck Schumer said. “So today I am demanding a full inspector general investigation as to what went on.”
Schumer said he wants the investigation to encompass Newark and the entire East Coast.
“The chaos at Newark very well could be a harbinger if issues like these aren’t fixed, and if the FAA can’t get real solutions off the ground,” Schumer added.
Schumer pointed to a nationwide air traffic controller shortage, cuts at the FAA due to the Department of Government Efficiency, old technology like copper wires still being in use, and depleted federal funds.
“So all this is a larger warning that we have to heed,” Schumer said. “Air traffic controllers have long warned the FAA that there are problems here, but the FAA waited. There was chaos, there were cuts. And so that’s why the Office of the Inspector General at the Department of Transportation must comb the FAA’s administrative, operational and capital functions right away.”
Schumer said there are several questions that need to be answered, including one about a recent bonus offered to other air traffic controllers to stay on the job.
“Because they knew there were shortages, they offered a $10,000 bonus to 13 different air traffic control towers, but not to Washington, Philadelphia or New York. Why? Since we’re the ones with the greatest need, it makes no sense. These are the places where the shortage creates real problems,” Schumer said.
Schumer also said recent DOGE cuts to the FAA should also be examined. The plan to replace old equipment like copper wires and floppy discs also needs to be scrutinized, along with the need to fill critical leadership vacancies.
“Newark Liberty, the airport, will continue to grapple with very significant operational disruptions if the critical shortages of air traffic controllers continues without a solution. And longer term, other airports in the nation will have the same problems we’ve seen if nothing is done,” Schumer said.
“I’m extremely concerned by the recent disruptions to service for travelers that have faced repeated delays and cancellations at Newark Airport. My office continues to press the FAA for answers on how they’re addressing this major travel disruption. We must ensure smooth service for Newark and air traffic across the country,” Sen. Cory Booker said.
What’s going on with Newark air traffic controllers?
The problems started a week ago but ramped up last Thursday due to a shortage of air traffic controllers and equipment outages. Adding fuel to the fire, one of the runways is under construction, limiting how many planes can take off and land.
A source familiar with the situation told CBS News that 20% of staff at the air traffic control center in Philadelphia, which oversees the airspace in Newark, walked off the job in frustration late last week. Their union disputes that, saying the workers were traumatized after having lost radar and communications with aircraft in the area. The union says those workers then took time they’re entitled to as employees who experience a traumatic event.
In a statement, the National Air Traffic Controllers Association said:
On Monday, April 28, air traffic controllers in Area C of the Philadelphia TRACON (PHL), who are responsible for separating and sequencing aircraft in and out of Newark Airport (EWR), temporarily lost radar and communications with the aircraft under their control, unable to see, hear, or talk to them. The controllers did not “walk off the job” as it has been reported by the media. Due to the event, the controllers took absence under the Federal Employees Compensation Act. This program covers all federal employees that are physically injured or experience a traumatic event on the job.
The dedicated, American, hard-working employees who serve as controllers are the foundation of our air traffic control system. These controllers and the thousands of other aviation safety professionals represented by NATCA ensure the safe and efficient movement of millions of passengers and tons of cargo through our dynamic airspace every day. These professionals ensure the safe movement of aircraft through the National Airspace System as a primary goal.
This is why NATCA supports Department of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy’s efforts to upgrade and modernize our nation’s air traffic control systems and infrastructure.
The FAA issued its own statement on the matter:
Our antiquated air traffic control system is affecting our workforce. As [Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy] has said, we must get the best safety technology in the hands of controllers as soon as possible. We are 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. In addition, we are updating our automation system to improve resiliency.
Frequent equipment and telecommunications outages can be stressful for controllers. 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.
When staffing or equipment issues occur, the FAA will ensure safety by slowing the rate of arrivals into the airport. We will keep the public updated as we work through these issues. The FAA will continue to be transparent with the public about the status of Newark and every airport at fly.faa.gov.
Delays and cancelations pile up
The flight boards at Newark on Monday told the story: Delays and cancelations were stacking up, some as much as three hours.
Travelers are frustrated since there are no quick fixes. Some are finding themselves stranded.
“We’ve had our third delay that we’ve just got. But it’s not canceled yet, so we’re happy about that,” traveler Sue Tobias said.
She was trying to return to Minneapolis.
“So far it hasn’t been canceled, but, like I said, we’ve gotten three delays so far. But we’re not set to take off for a couple of hours.”
“We came up here for a wedding. On Thursday we were delayed two or three times coming in here, and then we had to switch airports and fly into Atlantic City,” Florida resident Jay Lampiasi said. “[Atlantic City] is easy. It’s so much easier.”
“I just have to wait it out. There’s really nothing I can really do,” Azucena Rianchos said.
“I am just stranded here, and I was asking for, like, voucher, and [accomodations], but they’re not allowing me,” Bhavi Ghandi said.
On top of all of this, Real ID enforcement will begin on Wednesday.
“It’s going to be tough if you show up there without a passport or without a proper Real ID,” said Capt. Ross Aimer, CEO of Aero Consulting Experts. “If at all possible, circumnavigate Newark. We just have to have a lot of patience.”
United Airlines cuts flights
United Airlines is now cutting 35 roundtrip flights a day at Newark because of the disruptions, and the FAA instituted a “flow constrained area,” something typically seen in Florida due to heavy summer traffic or storms.
Newark is one of three major airports serving the New York City area, and the delays are having a ripple effect in Los Angeles, Atlanta, Chicago, Miami, Dallas and other cities, according to the flight tracking company FlightAware.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has said he will release the details of a new plan to revamp the decades-old air traffic control system this week.
“I know [U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy] is committed to addressing our nationwide air traffic controller shortage by supercharging hiring,” Murphy wrote in his social media post. “The past few days have shown us exactly why we need to reverse the decades of staffing decline at the FAA.”
More than 90% of country’s airport towers are staffed below FAA standards, according to a CBS News analysis earlier this year.
