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Travelers alarmed by recent communication outages at

Newark

airport

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FAA plans meeting with airlines on flight cuts at Newark

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United blames FAA for stretched infrastructure, urges

modernization

By Doyinsola Oladipo and Rajesh Kumar Singh

NEWARK, May 10 (Reuters) - Travelers flying in and out

of New Jersey's Newark Liberty International Airport were

increasingly edgy about a host of recent problems at the busy

airport, but they were most alarmed about two separate equipment

outages in the last two weeks that disrupted communications

between air traffic controllers and pilots.

The airport is one of the busiest in the United States, last

year handling nearly 49 million passengers out of the New York

metro area, the most populous in the country. Runway

construction and air traffic control staffing shortages have

caused cancellations and delays to spike in recent days.

But the disruptions to communications between pilots and air

traffic control left travelers shaken, with some questioning if

flying out of the airport is safe. On Friday at around 4 a.m.

EST (0800 GMT), a facility that guides air traffic in and out of

the airport suffered a 90-second communications outage,

following an April 28 incident that also lasted about 90

seconds.

"It's a little concerning that this is the second outage in

under 30 days," said Mikhail Liverpool, 37, from Somerset

County, New Jersey, who said his flight to Georgia was delayed

for four hours. "The fact that they didn't remediate the problem

the first time is, you know, worrisome to say the least."

Newark was the preferred airport for Mark Nelson, a systems

engineer at Siemens Healthineers, who travels for work and

personal reasons. But after the two incidents, Nelson said he

has decided to avoid it.

"If the FAA or someone tells you it is safe to fly from

Newark, do not believe them," said Nelson.

The airport was already considered a headache for travelers.

Last year, JD Power ranked it the lowest in terms of overall

customer satisfaction among mega airports in North America.

The disruptions have become more acute. Since May 1, flight

cancellations have surged to an average of 49 flights per day,

up from 4 flights a day in early April, according to aviation

analytics company Cirium. On-time departures dropped to 63%,

well below industry norms of about 80%.

Allison Miles, 34, from Tulsa, Oklahoma, said she now plans

on avoiding Newark after her flight from Houston was delayed by

more than 8 hours. "I'll probably stay home for a lot this year,

because until they can figure this out, I'm not going to get out

there," she said.

The Federal Aviation Administration plans to meet with major

airlines on Wednesday, including United Airlines, the

largest operator at Newark, about temporary cuts in flights at

the airport. United has culled about 10% of its daily Newark

flights and waived change fees and fare differences for

customers affected by the disruptions.

The FAA last year relocated control of the Newark airspace

to Philadelphia to address staffing and congested New York area

traffic.

United CEO Scott Kirby has blamed the airport's stretched

infrastructure for the delays. He wants U.S. Transportation

Secretary Sean Duffy to designate Newark as a slot-controlled

airport, which would allow the FAA to limit the number of

departing or arriving flights to prevent delays.

Duffy wants Congress to allocate billions to upgrade the

aging U.S. air traffic control system, but any overhaul would

take years. In the interim, some travelers said they'll shift

airports.

"Every other week I'm traveling, and the only issues I have

is traveling here," said John Clark, 50, from Greenville, South

Carolina, and a regular United flyer. Moving forward, he is

looking to fly out of LaGuardia Airport in Queens, even if it

lengthens his commute to his New Jersey office. "I'll try

LaGuardia again for a little while until that becomes a pain

point."