Newark Airport ‘Chaos’ Continues: 5 Reasons Behind The Delays

NEWARK, NJ — If you’re headed to Newark Airport in New Jersey this week, you might want to bring a good book to read.

A spiraling series of delays and canceled flights at the busy airport has been sparking a rising tide of frustration from travelers over the past week – and there isn’t any relief on the near horizon, some say.

On Monday, there were more than 250 delays and 150 cancellations at Newark Airport, FlightAware reported.

According to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), a ground delay caused backups for arriving flights that approached two hours. Departures saw delays up to 30 minutes.

United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby issued a statement about the situation on Friday, noting that the airline – which has a hub in Newark – has decided to cancel 35 roundtrip flights per day from its schedule there as of last weekend.

The situation has begun to attract attention from high-level elected officials, including Gov. Phil Murphy.

“The flight delays and cancellations over the past few days at Newark Airport have been completely and utterly unacceptable,” the governor said.

For now, a trip out of Newark continues to be a roll of the dice, with passengers reportedly seeing delays of nearly four hours on Sunday evening. Here’s what we know about the situation.

STAFFING AND EQUIPMENT

Many of the delays and cancellations are being blamed on staffing and equipment issues.

Newark Airport has seen frustrating delays in recent years due to a lack of air traffic controllers.

Two years ago, U.S. Rep. Josh Gottheimer of New Jersey paid a visit to the busy airport’s control tower to sound an alarm about the problem. The situation is so dire that at control towers for Newark, JFK and La Guardia airports, staffing is at just 54 percent — more than 30 percent below the minimum, the congressman said. See Related: Shortage Of Air Traffic Controllers In Newark Earns Lawmaker's Wrath

Last year, federal authorities announced plans to transfer control of the airspace in the Newark area to Philadelphia in an attempt to remedy the issue. See Related: Feds Will Move Newark Air Traffic Control To Philadelphia

Meanwhile, the airport has also been seeing equipment problems, authorities say.

According to Kirby at United Airlines, technology that FAA air traffic controllers rely on to manage the airplanes coming in and out of Newark airport has failed on “more than one occasion” over the past few week.

U.S. Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy has linked the tech failures to an “incredibly old” and outdated system, which still uses floppy disks and copper wires.

“The system that we’re using is not effective to control the traffic that we have in the airspace today,” Duffy said at a news conference on Friday, adding that the system is safe but prone to causing delays.

The tech problems are creating a devastating one-two punch when combined with the ongoing staffing woes, Kirby said.

“Unfortunately, the technology issues were compounded as over 20 percent of the FAA controllers for EWR walked off the job,” the airline CEO said.

It may be a status quo that travelers have to put up with for a while to come, he added.

“Keep in mind, this particular air traffic control facility has been chronically understaffed for years and without these controllers, it’s now clear – and the FAA tells us – that Newark Airport cannot handle the number of planes that are scheduled to operate there in the weeks and months ahead,” Kirby said.

“It's disappointing to make further cuts to an already reduced schedule at Newark, but since there is no way to resolve the near-term structural FAA staffing issues, we feel like there is no other choice in order to protect our customers,” Kirby wrote.

Kirby added that he has spoken to Duffy about the situation, and that there’s a plan in place to tackle the “difficult situation they inherited at Newark.”

The transportation secretary discussed plans to boost the number of air traffic controllers across the nation last week, outlining a blueprint for an aggressive recruitment campaign. Duffy said the agency is on track to hire at least 2,000 controllers in the U.S. this year.

The FAA also plans to offer a limited-time incentive package to keep experienced controllers from retiring, he said.

Gov. Murphy also referenced Duffy’s comments about “supercharging hiring” for air traffic controllers.

“The past few days have shown us exactly why we need to reverse the decades of staffing decline at the FAA,” the governor recently said.

U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York has joined the debate, calling the delays “a mess” that deserves a forensic analysis. He added that it’s an issue that can potentially impact 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 said.

Efforts to update the equipment at the airport are also picking up support.

The Association of Flight Attendants-CWA has called for airlines to cut the number of flights they’re operating out of Newark until the situation can be improved.

“Our air traffic controllers are the best in the world and they are making sure aviation stays safe,” AFA-CWA International President Sara Nelson said.

“We support every effort to secure the funding necessary to staff up and provide the resources that are a decade overdue for our air traffic controllers to be able to do their jobs,” Nelson added.

Until such a time, people may want to avoid flying through Newark Airport if they can, some pundits say.

Citing an unnamed air traffic controller, an MSNBC correspondent recently said he was told that “it is not a safe situation right now for the flying public” and “don’t fly into Newark – avoid Newark at all costs,” the Daily Beast reported.

WEATHER

Weather in the region has also been a contributing to the recent delays at Newark Airport.

Newark Airport officials have cited “wind conditions” and thunderstorms as factors in the recent delays.

Monday’s delays were attributed to a low cloud ceiling, the FAA reported.

CONSTRUCTION

Port Authority officials recently noted that runway rehabilitation work may impact flight schedules through mid-June at Newark Airport.

According to an advisory from the bi-state agency:

“From April 15, 2025 to mid-June 2025, Runway 4L-22R will be fully closed for rehabilitation work as part of a $121 million rehabilitation project. This work is designed to maintain the runway in a state of good repair, improve its infrastructure, meet the latest FAA standards, and ensure its continued safe operation. To minimize operational impacts during this period, the FAA will redirect flight activity to the airport’s other runways. While Runway 4L-22R is closed, Runways 4R-22L and 11-29 will remain operational. Passengers are advised to check with their airline for any updates, as flight schedules may be affected.”

According to the Port Authority, the 11,000-foot-long, 150-foot-wide runway, the busiest at EWR for departing flights, was last rehabilitated in 2014. The current project will include a new paved surface and upgraded lighting and signage.

The runway rehab is part of a series of upgrades that have been taking place at the airport over the past few years.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which runs Newark Airport, recently announced that some other major plans are in store for the 96-year-old travel center, including a new international terminal and replacement of the AirTrain system.

The announcement came on the heels of the highly hyped launch of a $2.7 billion new Terminal A at the airport, which became fully operational in 2023. The reborn terminal also includes new restaurants and retail outlets. Read More: Newark Airport’s Swanky New Terminal Has Seen Millions Of Passengers

The ongoing work hasn’t escaped notice from the airline industry. Skytrax, one of the aviation industry’s most respected ratings firms, recently awarded the airport’s new terminal a five-star rating: its highest possible mark. Read More: Surprise – Newark Airport Is Among Nation’s Best, New Ranking Says

RIDERSHIP

There are more passengers passing through Newark Airport than ever, officials say.

According to the Port Authority – which also manages JFK and LaGuardia airports – passenger volumes at its commercial airports during the first three months of 2025 were the second-busiest in agency’s history.

Over the first quarter of 2025, the Port Authority’s commercial airports welcomed a total of 31.9 million passengers, finishing just below last year’s record volumes of 32.3 million passengers served over the same period of 2024: the airports’ busiest year ever.

GUNS

While it isn’t a major factor in the recent delays, a rising trend has occasionally thrown another monkey wrench into the works: gun seizures.

When a firearm is seized, it can bring lines at a checkpoint to a standstill, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has previously said. It’s a situation that has been happening at a record-setting pace in 2025.

As of April 28, a total of 10 guns have been seized at Newark Airport so far this year. Officials said 21 firearms were seized at the airport in 2024, up from 20 in 2023 and 14 in 2022.

Guns can be transported on a flight if they are unloaded, packed in a locked, hard-sided case and declared to the airline. The airline will be sure that the gun travels with checked baggage in the belly of the plane, never in the cabin of the plane, the TSA says.

• See Related: Gun Seized At NJ Airport, Man Arrested; ‘Record-Setting’ Year Continues

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