Travel through Newark and other local airports down as Memorial Day weekend getaway starts
NEWARK, New Jersey (WABC) -- TSA officials are expecting 18 million passengers to fly through the nation's airports this Memorial Day Weekend.
But the FAA is starting to cut back on flight operations at Newark Liberty International Airport, after weeks of major travel disruptions.
Thursday's heavy rain caused Newark to be down to one runway, and it might slow things down even more.
While the AAA expects a record number of domestic fliers, the number of travelers flying locally, including through Newark Airport, has dropped this holiday weekend compared to this same time last year.
Nearly 2.1 million passengers will travel through Newark, JFK, LaGuardia, and Stewart airports from now through Monday, marking a 1% drop from the all-time high last year.
This comes as Newark Airport has faced a firestorm of challenges, including staffing shortages and system outages that lead to delays and cancellations.
The FAA reduced the number of flights in and out of Newark Airport by 25% on Tuesday to ease the pressure on Air Traffic Control.
That's down from the 80 or so flights operating at Newark any given hour.
After June 15, the number of flights will increase by 34 arrivals and 34 departures an hour.
This will be in place until October 25.
Julian Kheel, the CEO of Points Path, says travelers are altering their plans in light of recent events..
"Travelers have definitely gone out of their way to avoid Newark Airport and choose one of the other options if it fits their travel plans. And I do recommend that if you have travel in or through Newark, contact your airline," Kheel said.
Twice in the past month, the radar and communications systems that Philadelphia air traffic controllers who direct planes in and out of Newark rely on failed for a short time. That happened because the main line that carries the radar signal down from another FAA facility in New York failed, and the backup line didn't work immediately.
The controllers were unable to see or communicate with the planes around Newark Airport for as long as 90 seconds on April 28 and May 9.
The lines - some of which were old copper wires - failed a third time on May 11, but the backup system worked and the radar stayed online. The FAA said a fourth outage Monday knocked out radio communications for two seconds, but the radar stayed online.
After the initial outage, the already shorthanded control center in Philadelphia lost five to seven controllers to trauma leave. That left the airport unable to handle all the scheduled flights, leading to hundreds of cancellations and delays.
Officials have said the problems affecting the Newark airport are a prime example of why the entire air traffic control system nationwide needs to be overhauled.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced a multibillion-dollar plan to upgrade the nation's aging air traffic control system earlier this month.
The House tentatively included $12.5 billion in the overarching bill that Republicans are trying to pass now, but officials have called that amount just a down payment on the overall plan.
This is the first major holiday requiring a Real ID for domestic flights. Since implementing REAL ID on May 7, 93% of passengers are presenting a REAL ID or another acceptable ID, such as a passport.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.
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