outage

FAA halts East Coast flights due to equipment outage, affecting major US airports in New York, Newark, and Philadelphia.

The United States Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has halted flights to several busy East Coast airports amid an equipment outage, snarling more than 1,000 flights.

On Monday, the FAA issued ground stops at large commercial airports, including New York’s John F Kennedy International (JFK) and LaGuardia; Newark Liberty International in New Jersey, as well as Boston Logan and Philadelphia International Airport.

The flights were halted on the day that 130 world leaders and dozens of ministers were arriving in New York for the annual high-level meeting of the United Nations General Assembly.

US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said in a post on social media platform X that flights have resumed into New York’s LaGuardia and into Philadelphia, but that ground stops are still in effect at Newark, JFK, and Teterboro Airport in New Jersey. The ground stop has also been lifted in Boston.

FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford told reporters on Monday that it had “lost the primary circuit” at what is called Philadelphia TRACON, or Terminal Radar Approach Control, which controls air traffic into Philadelphia and airports across the busy northeast US airspace.

Bedford said that the backup fibre had a break and told reporters that it could take up to 13 hours to repair. He said the cut was between the city of New Brunswick, New Jersey, and Newark, New Jersey, which is home to Newark Liberty International Airport.

“An Amtrak construction crew accidentally cut into a fiber line in New Jersey which caused a telecom outage and forced FAA to pause flights in the Northeast,” Duffy said in a post on X.

Newark delays

At Newark alone, more than 1,000 flights had been delayed or cancelled. Throughout the US, there were nearly 4,000 delayed flights and 500 cancelled.

United Airlines said it would waive change fees for impacted travellers. Newark serves as a major hub for the airline.

“Flights that had been destined for Newark have either been held at their departure airport or diverted to alternative airports. Once the FAA outage is resolved, we will work to safely get our customers to their destinations and have issued a travel waiver to give our customers flexibility to manage their travel plans,” a representative for United Airlines said in a statement provided to Al Jazeera.

Newark has recorded the highest levels of delays and cancellations of any airport, according to FlightAware, which tracks flight disruptions in real time. As of 3pm Eastern Time in the US (19:00 GMT), 31 percent of departing flights from Newark had been cancelled, along with 29 percent of inbound flights. Meanwhile, 17 percent of departing flights from the United hub had been delayed, as had 17 percent of inbound flights.

A ground stop was also issued at Teterboro Airport in New Jersey, a private airport neighbouring New York City.

TRAVEL chaos caused by a major tech outage across all UK airports earlier this week has left thousands stranded – with many left out of pocket when booking back up flights and hotels.

An Air Traffic Control failure in the UK on Tuesday saw thousands of flights cancelled, resulting in travel chaos across the globe.

Many have since been asking if they can claim compensation back, with flights both delayed and cancelled for days.

However, as the NATS issue was classed as an “extraordinary circumstance” travellers are not entitled to cash compensation.

The maximum compensation you can get is for long-haul flights which are delayed four hours or more, which would be £520.

This is only for when the problems are the caused by the airline, directly, however.

Read more on travel inspo

GO ON

All the little-known websites for cheap or FREE tickets to gigs, theatre & festivals

ALL IN

I found the best value all inclusive London hotel… just £55pp with free food & booze

Lisa Minot, Head of Travel said: “Airlines are only required to give you compensation if the delay or cancellation is the airline’s fault, as in a technical failure on a plane or issues with crew.

“In this situation, where ATC is the reason for the chaos, there is unfortunately no compensation due.”

Yet, airlines do have a duty of care, so you can recoup some of your costs.

When affected by flight delays, airlines must provide travellers with food and drink as well as accommodation.

‘Care’ you should receive includes food and drink, two phone calls, accommodation and transport between the airport and where you are staying.

Usually, an airline will provide you with a voucher to get food or drink, however if a voucher isn’t provided, make sure you keep your receipts to claim back expenses incurred.

While an airline might automatically book your accommodation when your flight is delayed or cancelled, sometimes you might be asked to book it yourself via its website or a dedicated app.

Although, it is advised to always ask airport staff before booking a hotel yourself.

If you pay for your own hotel, you must make sure to keep all your receipts so you can claim back your costs.

Airlines will cover a hotel with a reasonable price though, so don’t go booking a five-star stay.

Then head to your airline’s website and find their expenses claims page and fill out the form with the relevant details.

The CAA also recommends asking for an itemised receipt to show what you purchased and how much was spent on each thing.

Lisa added: “Check your insurance policy to see if you have any redress if you have incurred additional costs like missing a concert or unable to pick up car hire. You may be able to claim for that.

“Generally for delays, if an airline looks after you or provides you with food and drink or hotels, you cannot claim for the same costs against your travel insurance.”