Newark Airport Ground Stop Due to Air Traffic Control Issues

NEWARK, New Jersey — Newark Liberty International Airport experienced a temporary ground stop for incoming flights on Thursday morning after air traffic controllers reported losing their radio frequencies, officials said.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) confirmed that incoming flights to Newark and nearby Teterboro airports were grounded due to equipment problems at the Philadelphia air traffic control center. The ground stop began early in the morning and was lifted by 12:30 p.m.

United Airlines spokesperson described the incident as a “glitch” that did not affect departing flights.

This incident marks the second outage for controllers in less than 24 hours at the Philadelphia ATC center, which manages airspace for Newark. There was a previous communication issue reported on Wednesday evening when transmissions between planes and controllers were often unclear.

The timing of these issues raises concerns with the approach of the busy Labor Day travel weekend. Earlier this year, the FAA had already reduced the number of flights permitted in and out of Newark due to ongoing air traffic control problems.

The FAA has stated it is currently investigating the cause of the communication issues.