Creaky US air traffic system faces summer travel rush

Recent radar outages raise fear of flying

- JOHN BIERS

As the Memorial Day holiday weekend gets underway, US voyagers are girding for a bumpy ride as heavy summer travel volumes test the nation’s overworked air traffic system.

Travellers at Newark Liberty International Airport said this week they were resigned to delays but not worried about safety.

“It's more of a concern coming back,” Benjamin Schmutzer, 32, said Wednesday night at Newark before his departure to Portugal. “Hopefully the government has sorted it out.”

One of three major airports serving the busy New York City region, Newark has been under a cloud since an April 28 equipment outage resulted in air traffic controllers losing radar and communications with planes for 90 seconds.

The incident, which spurred scrutiny in Congress and a comic skit on Saturday Night Live, was a factor in some Newark-assigned Air Traffic Control (ATC) staff taking leave “to recover from the stress of multiple recent outages,’ according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

While the bulk of the recent incidents have been at Newark, part of Denver's air traffic system also lost communications for 90 seconds on May 12.

The US air safety regulator has also faced questions after a fatal January crash at Washington National Airport, the first major US commercial crash since 2009.