Travelers faced flight disruptions at Newark Liberty International Airport on Monday, April 28, 2025. The cause was a critical failure of telecommunications and equipment at Philadelphia TRACON. In addition, staffing shortages for air traffic controllers also contributed to the widespread chaos at the busy air travel hub. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) began slowing arrivals and departures in the early afternoon and eventually issued a ground stop at 1:53 p.m. This pause kept planes grounded at their departure airports until at least 5 p.m.
Flight tracking systems showed unusual patterns as planes circled endlessly above New Jersey rather than proceeding to their destinations. United Airlines reported more than 35 flights diverted to alternate airports up and down the East Coast.
Passengers endured extended delays, with some flights transformed from routine trips into grueling marathon journeys as the aviation system struggled to recover from the dual technical and staffing challenges. By early evening, officials announced the equipment outage had been resolved, but delays continued due to the ongoing controller shortage.
Travelers Share Nightmare Experiences
Many passengers found their travel plans derailed by the equipment and staffing issues. While traveling from Memphis, David Bibeau experienced multiple delays, including an unplanned stop in Allentown, Pennsylvania, where his fuel-limited plane spent hours orbiting before landing on the tarmac.
“Hours and hours of circling Allentown, banking it and then sitting on the tarmac,” Bibeau told ABC7NY, later adding with relief, “Never been so happy to be in Newark in my life.”
The disruption at Newark quickly spread beyond New Jersey, creating a domino effect of delays across the national air transportation network. FlightAware’s “Misery Map” showed mounting delays throughout Monday afternoon as the impacts of the outage spread to connecting flights and airports nationwide. Departures from Newark faced delays exceeding two hours while arriving flights experienced delays of approximately 15 minutes. United Airlines issued a travel waiver to allow customers to adjust their travel plans in response to the disruption.
When Will Newark Airport Operations Return To Normal?
Although the equipment failure was fixed relatively quickly, ongoing shortages of air traffic controllers continue to cause uncertainty about when normal operations will resume. Travelers with upcoming flights through Newark should contact their airlines directly for the most current information about potential delays or cancellations affecting their travel plans.
