Newark airport is one of many volcanoes waiting to erupt, pilot reveals

The crisis at New Jersey’s Newark Liberty International Airport has not only been in the making for years, but it’s just “one of many volcanoes waiting to erupt,” according to American Airlines Capt.Dennis Tajer.Tajer, a pilot for over 30 years, is one of many aviation experts who told FOX Business that the air traffic control system has been under immense pressure for years given the persisting staffing shortages, outdated technology and underinvestment in critical infrastructure. “We’ve seen an uptick in serious runway incursions that could have been prevented with modern technology and proper staffing,” Tajer said.

Newark “is getting the attention in part due to the volume of traffic in a tight airspace, but these issues are the undertow across the system,” he added. These shortfalls came into focus last week when air traffic controllers at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) facility in Philadelphia lost radar and radio communications while directing planes to Newark, the second-busiest airport in the New York airport system, for nearly 90 seconds.It led to significant delays and flight cancellations.

Air traffic controllers at the Philadelphia TRACON facility work on Newark arrivals and departures.Aside from the longstanding issues with the air traffic control system, Newark’s challenges have been further strained by ongoing construction at the airport, which leaves it temporarily operating with only one of two parallel runways.Regardless, Tajer said there is no question that operations are still safe, saying that pilots “will never allow the safety margin to be narrowed no matter the cause.” Stephen Abraham, a former air traffic controller at John F.Kennedy Airport in New York, agreed, telling FOX Business that despite the system being “stretched,” he would never call it unsafe.“Unsafe means controllers are making mistakes.

And I think if you look nationwide, the system is incredibly safe,” Abraham said. Acco...