Hourly flights at beleaguered Newark Liberty International Airport will remain drastically reduced through the end of the year as construction and staffing shortages continue plaguing the busy travel hub, the Federal Aviation Administration confirmed Friday.
Just 28 arriving and departing flights will be permitted each hour on weekends from Sept. 1 through Dec. 31, as critical airport construction presses on. The rest of the time, there will only be 34 arrivals and departures through Oct. 25, the FAA said in a statement.
“The confirmed reduced rates will maintain safety while alleviating excessive flight delays at the airport due to staffing and equipment challenges, the agency said. “The early completion of runway construction at the airport that added to the delays will also contribute to a more efficient operation.”
Runway 4L-22R, which shut down on April 15 after the FAA deemed it unsafe and ordered a $121 million repair project, reopened Monday, 13 days ahead of schedule. The closure had left just two open runways.
The FAA last month cut Newark’s flight capacity to 56, a fraction of the 80-plus that used to fly in and out, during the project that had left just two open runways.
The New Jersey airport has been embroiled in disaster after disaster this year, ranging from air traffic controller shortages to inexplicable technology glitches on top of the endless work.
The mass chaos has left thousands of travelers stranded ever since the first tech disaster on April 28 saw a burnt-out copper wire spark a full-on blackout at the airport.
Many pointed fingers at United Airlines, which makes up 75% of all Newark’s flight traffic, and accused it of overcrowding the airport — prompting the carrier’s CEO to vow that travel at the embattled airfield would be the “cheapest” they’ve ever been this summer.
The FAA assured that it is taking action to improve matters at Newark, including updating antiquated technology and boosting telecommunication connections, according to the release.
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