Air traffic controllers took to social media on Labor Day to report that radar screens in Philadelphia that cover Newark Airport “went blank for five minutes.” Meanwhile, the FAA ordered a ground stop at Newark and throttled traffic heading into the airport. Some inbound international flights were diverted while others were stuck at their departure airports throughout the country. As of late Monday, FlightAware was reporting departure delays of up to 89 minutes and arrival delays of 61 minutes. A ground stop was also in place at Teterboro.
Commenters on a web forum called point Sixty Five alleged the problem was not with radar but the data lines feeding information to the Philadelphia controllers. They claim there were dozens of flights in the area of the airport when the screens went blank. The FAA has confirmed the service disruptions but hasn’t given details on its cause. “The FAA is slowing flights into Newark Liberty International Airport this afternoon due to a radar issue. For updates, please monitor fly.faa.gov,” the FAA said in a statement.
