A failure in telecommunications at a key air traffic control center disrupted operations at several airports in the northeastern United States on Monday, causing hundreds of cancellations and delays that affected thousands of passengers for hours.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued ground stop orders at Newark Liberty, Teterboro, and Philadelphia airports due to capacity issues, while activity at JFK and LaGuardia was also halted. The incident originated at the Philadelphia TRACON center, the facility that manages regional air traffic in the northeast.
The FAA confirmed in its operational notices that problems with automation and equipment persisted in Area C of the Philadelphia TRACON. Arrivals to Philadelphia were able to resume with limited capacity, although the agency later warned that failures continued and further restrictions may be necessary.
According to The Associated Press, the problem began when a main telecommunications circuit failed in the morning. When attempting to switch to the backup system, workers discovered that the fiber optic line had been cut. The Secretary of Transportation, Sean Duffy, stated that a construction crew from Amtrak accidentally cut a fiber line in New Jersey, causing a telecommunications outage and forcing the FAA to halt flights in the northeast.
Newark Liberty was the hardest hit airport, with approximately 500 canceled flights between arrivals and departures, more than a third of its scheduled operations for the day. According to data from Reuters, at 2 p.m. Eastern Time, the airport recorded a 21% cancellation rate and a 20% delay rate. The FAA confirmed a ground stop at Newark due to equipment disruption. One of its operational notices indicated that area C of the Philadelphia TRACON was receiving an aircraft to check the automation system's functionality before deciding how to proceed with operations.
United Airlines announced the cancellation of all its domestic flights —both from the main fleet and United Express— to or from Newark airport for the remainder of the day, prioritizing only pending international departures. The airline issued a travel waiver so that affected passengers could change their itineraries without additional fees.
"We are aware that this disruption represents a significant inconvenience for our customers. Once the situation is resolved, we will work to bring them to their destinations safely," the company stated in a statement.
The FAA administrator, Bryan Bedford, warned that the repair of the cut fiber could take considerably longer. "Repairing that fiber break will likely take 13 hours. It's a huge outage," he stated, according to a video shared by a transportation reporter from CBS. Verizon reported that its technicians were working to restore service as quickly as possible.
Technical problems were compounded by unfavorable weather conditions. The FAA's daily air traffic report had warned of low clouds at JFK, LaGuardia, and Newark airports in New York, as well as in Philadelphia. The agency recommended that passengers check directly with their airlines for specific information regarding their flights.
The incident occurred at a time of maximum operational pressure: dozens of foreign leaders were traveling to New York to participate in the United Nations General Assembly. The flight of President Donald Trump from Washington to New York, however, was able to take off as scheduled.
Recent technological issues in Newark's operations have historical precedents. In 2025, the FAA reported several incidents related to telecommunications and equipment at the Philadelphia TRACON, which manages the arrivals and departures of that airport. In July of that year, the agency activated a new fiber optic network between New York and the Philadelphia TRACON, with connections distributed over two different communication routes to enhance redundancy and keep the equipment operational in case one of them experienced an outage.
By early afternoon, flights began to gradually resume at LaGuardia and Philadelphia, while Newark, JFK, and Teterboro remained paralyzed. Authorities warned, however, that it would take time to clear the accumulated delays and recommended that passengers check the status of their flights with their respective airlines.
The main circuit that failed was scheduled to be replaced as part of the modernization of the national air traffic control system.
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