Stories
US Northeast Flights Resume After Air Traffic Control Outage; Hundreds Canceled
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CNBC TV18•22-09-2026, 07:59
US Northeast Flights Resume After Air Traffic Control Outage; Hundreds Canceled
- •Damaged communication lines at a key Philadelphia air traffic control facility caused hours of disruptions across the US Northeast, leading to hundreds of flight cancellations.
- •The primary communication line failed, and the backup fiber optic line was inadvertently severed by railroad construction workers, leaving controllers without radar or communications.
- •Newark Liberty International Airport saw over 600 cancellations, with no commercial flights landing for nearly eight hours; Philadelphia, LaGuardia, and Kennedy airports also experienced significant disruptions.
- •Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy confirmed repairs but warned it would take time to clear existing delays; the outage occurred as President Trump and foreign leaders arrived for the UN General Assembly.
- •The technical issues originated from the same FAA facility in Philadelphia that caused disruptions at Newark last spring, highlighting ongoing infrastructure challenges.
Key Questions Answered
The outage was caused by a failure of the primary telecommunications circuit at an FAA facility in Philadelphia, combined with a severed backup fiber optic line that was accidentally cut during construction work.
Every major airport in the New York City area was hit by the disruptions, including Newark Liberty International Airport, LaGuardia, and Kennedy airports, as well as Philadelphia International Airport.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy initially stated that an Amtrak construction crew cut the line, while Amtrak pointed to a New Jersey Transit construction crew working in the area between Newark and New Brunswick.
