According to U.S. aviation regulators, Newark Airport, one of the main hubs serving the New York City area, suffered another power outage early Friday morning and another power outage from the air traffic control system, the second damaged flight in recent weeks, which has become a major concern for passengers.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said a major air traffic control facility in Philadelphia guided the aircraft into and out of Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey, and broke down.
The facility's radar lasted 90 seconds at 3.55 a.m. Friday, an activity similar to a communication failure on April 28 that caused hundreds of flights to be cancelled or delayed at the airport in the past two weeks, the Federal Aviation Administration said. This is rare and can automatically attract serious concern from the industry and regulators.
The latest failure comes the second day after U.S. Transport Secretary Sean Duffy announced a full modernization of U.S. air traffic control systems within four years, including replacing broadcast and surveillance systems with modern technology.
"We are solving the problem. We will fix it. We will build a whole new system for everyone, your family and the American people," Duffy said Thursday.
The FAA said earlier this week it was installing new fiber optic data cables to carry radar signals between facilities in Philadelphia and New York. Officials said some of the lines connecting the two facilities were outdated copper wires.
As of 12.15 pm on Friday, Newark reported 320 delays and 137 cancellations, according to data from flight tracking site Flightaware.
"In the Tracon area of Philadelphia, the telecommunications outages affected the exhibition of communications and radar, which will guide aircraft in and out of Newark's Liberty International Airport Space," a statement said in a statement.
It added: "The power outage occurred around 3.55 am on Friday, May 9, and lasted for about 90 seconds."
Additionally, regulators have issued a ground stop at the airport due to construction, which will not take effect until mid-Friday.
Josh Gottheimer, a Democratic Congressman in New Jersey, said the second interruption was "big news."
According to Fox Business, “Travelers have heard a lot from a lot of people.
Gottheimer added that travelers “have been frustrated, angry and concerned about this because now, the airport just lacks the staffing level of FAA towers, modern technology and infrastructure, and we need to make sure that this airspace is the busiest airspace in the world, it is the busiest space in the world, effective, smooth, smooth, safe, 24/7”.
The power outage last week occurred in the afternoon, preventing controllers from communicating with the pilot. Several people reportedly felt so painful that they took a leave and roared further at the air traffic operations.
Public communications between air traffic control and pilots showed communication with FedEx flight pilots in Boston, who were advised to switch radio frequency frequencies.
"FedEx 1989, I'm going to hand you over to you, and our range is getting darker again," the controller said. "If you care about this, please contact your airline and try to put pressure on them to solve these problems."
"I'm sorry to hear this news, FedEx 1989." "I'm going to switch, good luck."
The Associated Press contributed the report