Construction Mishap Knocks Out US Telecom Line, Hundreds Of Flights Delayed, Cancelled

Hundreds of flights across the US East Coast were delayed or cancelled on Monday after a telecommunications line serving a key air traffic control facility was knocked out in a construction mishap, officials said.

The disruption affected operations at several major airports in the New York and Philadelphia areas, with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) temporarily pausing some flights.

US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said flights were resuming at LaGuardia Airport and Philadelphia by around 1900 GMT, while flights into Newark and JFK airports remained paused.

“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 on X.

Backup line also found damaged

The FAA said the disruption was caused by two separate problems at the same air traffic facility in Philadelphia.

FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said the primary telecommunications circuit failed first. Engineers then discovered that a backup fibre-optic line had also been severed during construction between New Brunswick and Newark, New Jersey.

Bedford described the damage to the backup line as “massive” and said repairs could take about 13 hours.

The outage affected flights into Philadelphia as well as major New York-area airports, including Kennedy, LaGuardia and Newark.

By around 1900 GMT, Newark had recorded 168 cancellations and 97 delays, while Philadelphia had 63 cancellations and 189 delays, according to FlightAware.

FAA races to restore connections

Officials said crews were working to restore the primary connection as quickly as possible while repairing the damaged backup line.

Bedford said the failed primary circuit was already due to be replaced as part of a wider overhaul of the US air traffic control system.

The disruption occurred at the same Philadelphia FAA facility that was at the centre of major flight disruptions at Newark Liberty International Airport in spring 2025.

(With inputs from agencies)