Lack of staffing will cause flight delays at Newar Liberty Airport

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) The flight arriving at Newar Liberty International Airport said it faces delays due to a shortage of personnel on Monday morning as its agents continue to tackle a shortage of certified air traffic controllers.

The FAA said the traffic management program was enabled for traffic arriving at the airport around 7am on Monday. According to the FAA advisory, the results cause an average delay of 49 minutes.

The FAA has instructed travelers to check directly with the airline to see if it would affect the flight.

Newark Airport hits at New Delay, air traffic control voices can be heard

Air traffic control staffing is a continuous challenge across the aviation industry, and many Travel confusion. Newark faced a mountain of challenges over the summer from equipment halts, lack of staffing in air traffic control and ongoing runway construction. This has made them particularly vulnerable to existing personnel disruptions and increased operational tensions.

The FAA has already concluded flights coming and going to the airport by the end of the year to ensure safety and limit travel disruptions. In May, they began restricting traffic at Newark, the second busiest airport in New York’s metropolitan area. This followed a series of outages in Philadelphia Tracon Area C, which leads aircraft inside and outside Newark Airport.

The outage, which prompted delays in travel, underscored the pressure the air traffic control system had been undertaking for years. Continued shortage of staffing, Underinvestment in outdated technologies and critical infrastructure.

Transportation Department will provide air traffic controllers with a 20% bonus to delay retirement as staffing crisis deepens

Transport Secretary Sean Duffy has begun working to improve the reliability of the Operation at the airportincluding accelerated technical and logistical improvements and increased air traffic controller staff.

In an interview with CBS News in May, Duffy said it takes time to increase the workforce for air traffic controllers, but the key part of doing so is keeping more experienced controllers on the field for longer.

“The key is I think they provided bonuses to air traffic controllers who are eligible to retire. Don’t leave because they want to pay a 20% bonus on their salary,” Duffy said. “So, as we bring in more air traffic controllers and maintain more experienced controllers, we can make up for that difference.”

His plans to strengthen the employment pipeline include expanding opportunities for veteran military air traffic controllers by increasing the number of qualified facilities, providing financial incentives to graduates, providing financial incentives to new recruits to complete key training milestones, and rewarding academy graduates who accept placements in difficult locations for staff.

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Additionally, Duffy is calling for more instructors and establishing a new learning center at the Academy of Air Traffic Controllers in Oklahoma City.

Duffy said the agency is also working to streamline the hiring process by ensuring top candidates do not wait more than a year for routine medical and security clearance.