The Federal Aviation Administration concluded the number of flights at Newar Liberty International Airport in New Jersey following a well-published series of ATC suspensions and delays.
The agency on May 20 said it would impose a provisional order as it found a “sustainable number” flight that exceeds Newark's capacity.
FAA administrator Chris Rocheleau said the move, which follows a series of meetings with US operators, “mitigates major inconveniences to people traveling from excessive flight delays.”
Rocheleau cites factors related to Newark's operational challenges, including “runway construction, staffing challenges, and recent equipment issues,” warning that it could “spread through the National Space System.”
Under the interim order, the FAA states that the maximum number of flights processed per hour in Newark will be 56 (28 arrivals and 28 departures) until mid-June until construction work on the airport's main runway is nearly complete.
The FAA will then allow 34-hour departures and arrivals until October 25th, when the Northern Summer Operating Schedule ends. The airport usually handles around 77 flights per hour.
However, it will maintain stricter restrictions on Saturdays from June to October as it is expected that the construction work on the runway will still be underway.
“The FAA may change targeted limits if capacity is present to accommodate more flights without significantly increasing delays, or if it determines that further flight reductions are necessary,” the agency said.
On May 9th, Newark was hit with disruption after communications and radar displays affected by the halt of telecommunications (continued in the '90s) in the Philadelphia Traicon Area C, which leads to air traffic in Newark.
Similar outages occurred on May 5, April 5, 2024 and November 2024, urging airlines to urge the FAA to limit flight numbers to resolve operational disruptions.
