Verizon Fiber Cut Grounds Hundreds of Newark, New York, Philadelphia Flights

A construction crew in New Jersey cut a Verizon fiber cable on Monday, severing the backup data feed for air traffic controllers and forcing the FAA to halt flights into Newark, Philadelphia and, later, New York City — disrupting more than 1,200 flights across the region.

More than 600 flights in and out of Newark were canceled by 6 p.m. Monday, more than half of the day's schedule, according to FlightAware. Nearly 100 more were delayed. At Philadelphia, more than 200 flights were canceled and more than 400 delayed.

The Federal Aviation Administration stopped flights bound for Newark and Philadelphia and diverted nearly 100 aircraft, some after hourslong trips from Europe, to other U.S. airports.

Flights resumed Monday evening after repairs to the line, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said in a post on X.

The failure began with an initial circuit outage. "When it went to flip into the backup, we discovered the backup fiber had a break," FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford told reporters in Washington, D.C., on the sidelines of an event showcasing a new artificial intelligence-powered air traffic control tool.

The fault affected the Terminal Radar Approach Control facility in Philadelphia, known as TRACON, which guides planes in and out of Newark and Philadelphia.

Who cut the cable

NJ Transit said a construction crew working on a rail project between New Brunswick and North Brunswick, New Jersey, "accidentally severed a fiber-optic cable while working at the site." The transit agency said the crew was operating about 10 feet from utility markings.

Verizon pushed back hard. "Construction contractors working in the area dug up and cut our cable," the company said in a statement. "Verizon's facilities were fully functional up to that point. Verizon bears no responsibility for this incident."

The carrier said it "immediately deployed our technicians to the scene" and was "actively working to repair the damaged cable and restore connectivity as quickly as possible."

NJ Transit said its staff "is currently on site working to determine the status of the repairs, while also determining whether it was Verizon or the contractor who made the utility markings at the site." The question of who marked the utilities — and who ignored them — now sits at the center of the dispute.

Airlines absorb the shock

The disruption hit Newark Liberty International Airport, United Airlines' busiest international hub, along with Philadelphia International Airport and New Jersey's Teterboro Airport.

More than 100 flights bound for Newark were diverted, according to Flightradar24, including international flights from Iceland, Egypt, Greece, Spain and France. A United flight from Berlin landed at Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport. An SAS flight from Stockholm went to Washington Dulles International Airport.

United waived change fees for affected travelers. To ease staffing strain, the airline offered extra pay for crews picking up trips at Newark and confirmed space to commute to the New York City area. American Airlines, which operates a Philadelphia hub, also waived change fees and let customers fly out of other airports.

The disruption spread to New York City in the early afternoon. The FAA halted flights into LaGuardia Airport and John F. Kennedy International Airport, though they resumed with residual delays by late afternoon.

An old problem, a familiar warning

Aging air traffic control equipment and technology failures have vexed airline executives for years. The Trump administration last year announced a multibillion-dollar overhaul of U.S. air traffic control equipment and resources.

Duffy seized on the incident to press the case. "This incident underscores the need for additional funding to modernize aging infrastructure and prevent disruptions like this in the future," he wrote on X.

The timing could hardly have been worse. The disruptions unfolded hours before President Donald Trump and a host of international leaders were scheduled to arrive in New York for the United Nations General Assembly.

For airlines already stretched on staffing, the episode turns a single severed cable into a budget-line argument in Washington — and a reminder that one backup line stood between routine operations and a systemwide ground stop.