Flight delays and cancellations at Newark Liberty International Airport continued to rise Friday morning, creating more travel frustration for passengers already reeling from another chaotic day just 24 hours earlier. By midday Friday, the airport had already recorded close to 200 delayed flights and 18 cancellations, highlighting a growing operational issue as summer travel looms.
Airport officials pointed to two primary causes: ongoing air traffic control staffing shortages and a major construction project on one of the runways. These two factors combined have significantly disrupted operations throughout the week.
The construction project, valued at $121 million, involves the full closure of one of Newark’s main runways until at least mid-June. At times, the construction has forced the airport to operate with only a single runway for both departures and arrivals, a situation that has caused widespread scheduling bottlenecks.
This past Thursday, the extent of the disruption was particularly severe. Almost 20% of all scheduled departures were canceled, while more than 40% of flights experienced delays. The problems didn’t just affect planes leaving the airport—arriving flights were also impacted. According to data from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), there was a significant slowdown in inbound traffic as well. At one point, the average delay for flights arriving at Newark reached a staggering 381 minutes, which is more than five hours.
The situation on Thursday was the second major travel disruption for the airport in just a week. Earlier in the week, Monday saw a similar meltdown when a ground stop was issued. That incident stemmed from equipment failures at the FAA’s airspace operations center in Philadelphia. While the equipment issue was centered in another city, its effects quickly rippled out to Newark, compounding the existing delays already caused by runway rehabilitation and insufficient staffing in the control tower.
These persistent issues have raised concerns among travelers and officials alike, especially with the busy summer travel season rapidly approaching. Airlines and passengers alike are bracing for what could be a rocky few months if the current problems aren’t resolved quickly.
Federal transportation authorities are taking notice. Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy acknowledged the gravity of the situation, emphasizing the need to act before the current inconveniences evolve into more serious safety issues. “You’re starting to see cracks in the system and it’s our job to not wait until there’s a disaster, but over the horizon and fix it before there’s an incident we will seriously regret,” Duffy said.
In an effort to address the staffing crisis that is aggravating flight disruptions, the Department of Transportation this week revealed new measures aimed at expanding the air traffic control workforce. Among these efforts are initiatives to widen the training pipeline for new recruits. Additionally, the department is attempting to retain veteran controllers by offering them enhanced salaries and bonuses, particularly to discourage early retirement.
Staffing shortages among air traffic controllers have been an ongoing issue for years, but the current wave of delays has brought new urgency to the problem. It’s a high-pressure job with a long training period, and the FAA has historically struggled to keep up with the demand for qualified personnel. With increasing air traffic and more complex flight patterns, the shortage is becoming more and more visible to travelers in the form of delays and cancellations.
While federal agencies work on longer-term solutions, Newark Liberty International Airport has issued a travel advisory urging passengers to stay informed and plan ahead. The advisory strongly recommends that travelers verify the status of their flights before leaving for the airport to avoid getting stranded at the terminal. With unpredictability now a key feature of flying in and out of Newark, such precautions are becoming essential.
As the construction project pushes forward into mid-June, airport officials are warning that the disruptions are unlikely to ease in the near term. The improvements being made to the runway are part of a larger effort to modernize airport infrastructure, but for now, they are contributing to a cascade of operational hurdles.
Flight tracking data confirms just how severe the impact has been. Thursday’s cancellations represented nearly one in five scheduled departures. With more than 40% of remaining flights delayed, passengers found themselves stuck in terminals, sitting on planes for hours, or forced to make alternate travel plans.
Meanwhile, pilots and airline crews have also felt the strain. Airlines have had to scramble to adjust staffing schedules, relocate aircraft, and manage customer dissatisfaction. With limited runway access and restricted airspace due to controller shortages, carriers have little room to maneuver.
Passengers caught in Thursday’s disruption described chaotic scenes in the terminals, with lines at service counters stretching for hours and limited real-time updates about flight statuses. For many, it was the second such ordeal in less than a week.
The problems are not unique to Newark. Across the country, airports have been grappling with similar issues, but Newark’s combination of aging infrastructure and critical staffing gaps has made it a flashpoint. The airport serves as a key hub for both domestic and international flights, and any disruption there can have ripple effects across the broader national air travel network.
FAA officials said they are coordinating closely with airport authorities and airlines to try to manage the situation. Still, they admit there are no quick fixes. The runway rehabilitation project, while necessary for long-term capacity and safety improvements, is adding significant pressure to an already fragile system.
With Memorial Day and the summer travel season just weeks away, time is running short to implement effective remedies. In addition to ramping up hiring and retention programs, the FAA is exploring technology-based solutions and collaborative scheduling with airlines to reduce congestion during peak periods.
Transportation Secretary Duffy emphasized that the challenges at Newark—and more broadly in the nation’s aviation system—require both immediate and sustained responses. “We can’t afford to be reactive,” Duffy warned. “If we want a system that’s safe, efficient, and resilient, then we need to invest in it before things fall apart.”
For travelers, the best course of action for now is to remain vigilant. Airlines have encouraged passengers to sign up for alerts, check apps frequently, and be prepared for last-minute changes. Newark’s advisory echoes those same precautions, warning passengers not to assume that scheduled flights will take off or land on time.
While the FAA and Department of Transportation work to stabilize the system, Newark passengers are likely to face continued turbulence—on the ground and in the air.