The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has announced a second radar outage affecting Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey within a span of less than two weeks. This troubling incident continues to highlight the ongoing concerns regarding the state of air traffic control in the United States, putting increased pressure on the administration of President Donald Trump to enhance aviation safety.
On Friday, the FAA reported that at approximately 3:55 AM local time (07:55 GMT), a facility located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, experienced a loss of telecommunications signal lasting about 90 seconds. This outage prevented the facility from effectively monitoring communications and radar signals for Newark Airport. A recording reviewed by Reuters captured the frustration experienced during this outage. “FedEx 1989, I’m going to hand you off here. Our scopes just went black again,” a controller informed the pilot of a shipping flight. “If you care about this, contact your airline and try to get some pressure for them to fix this stuff.”
This recent incident marks the second occurrence of a 90-second outage at Newark, a crucial air terminal serving metropolitan areas like New York City. A similar outage took place on April 28, resulting in hundreds of flight delays and numerous diversions. Following that incident, five air traffic controllers took leave under a federal law permitting time off after traumatic events.
In the aftermath of Friday's radar outage, The Associated Press reported an increase in delays and cancellations at Newark Airport, utilizing data from the website FlightAware.com. During a daily briefing, Karoline Leavitt, White House Press Secretary, briefly addressed the second outage, assuring that upgrades would be implemented in the coming months. “There was a glitch in the system this morning, especially at Newark airport,” Leavitt stated. “That glitch was caused by the same telecoms and software issues that were raised last week. Everything went back online after the brief outage, and there was no operational impact.” She confirmed that the FAA and the Department of Transportation would address this technical issue to prevent further outages.
While any outage can be concerning, industry insiders emphasize that both air traffic controllers and pilots are trained to handle such situations in order to minimize risks. “The system is wired to run really well when everything’s functioning. But the most important part is that it’s prepared to function when things go wrong,” stated Captain Dennis Tajer of the Allied Pilots Association. He reassured the public that “even when it sounds frightening, know that the air traffic controllers and the pilots have training, and we go to that.”
The recent outages have intensified scrutiny on the Trump administration, which has been linked to several high-profile aviation incidents since taking office in January. Notably, on January 29, a mid-air collision occurred over the Potomac River near Washington, DC, resulting in the tragic loss of all lives on board an American Airlines passenger jet and a military Black Hawk helicopter. President Trump initially suggested that diversity initiatives under his predecessor, former President Joe Biden, were responsible for the crash, despite lacking evidence to support that claim.
In February, the administration faced backlash for cutting hundreds of FAA personnel in an effort to address alleged waste within the federal government. Critics argued that these staffing reductions in key roles, including airline safety inspectors and maintenance mechanics, could increase the likelihood of errors and malfunctions within the air traffic control system.
In light of these concerns, US Congress member Josh Gottheimer, representing a district in New Jersey, issued a statement demanding an increase in staffing at the FAA. He emphasized that the issue of aviation safety transcends partisan politics. “I am demanding that the Trump Administration add more air traffic controllers to cover Newark Airport to immediately help reduce shortages — and pay all the workers accordingly,” Gottheimer asserted. “The bottom line is that this isn’t a partisan issue — it’s a matter of public safety. It’s about fixing a system that needs fixing.”
Trump administration officials have criticized previous administrations for failing to adequately modernize existing air traffic control systems. Recently, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced plans to lead a modernization initiative, which includes replacing outdated copper cables with fiber optics and upgrading aging radars and radios. “Building this new system is an economic and national security necessity, and the time to fix it is now,” Duffy remarked in his news release. However, the success of this project hinges on securing approval and funding from Congress, leaving its future uncertain.
