Floppy discs and copper strips: Newark failures hint at looming threat of another FAA disaster



There have been multiple air traffic control communication and radar malfunctions in recent days, prompting renewed concern about risks in America's skies and on its runways.

The Federal Aviation Administration acknowledged in a series of statements that there was a telecommunications issue Friday at Philadelphia TRACON Area C, the air traffic control tower and radar facility at Philadelphia International Airport that guides aircraft into and out of Newark Liberty International Airport airspace.

Although the issue apparently lasted only 90 seconds, the FAA slowed aircraft in and out of Newark while ensuring that "redundancies were working as designed." The ground stop reportedly lasted around 45 minutes, and, according to the flight tracking site FlightAware, roughly 280 flights were delayed and 87 canceled at Newark as of late Sunday.

'We use floppy discs. We use copper wires.'

A week earlier, the FAA similarly had to slow arrivals and departures on account of "telecommunications and equipment issues at Philadelphia TRACON."

The New York Times reported that air traffic controllers working the airspace around the Newark airport lost communications with planes for nearly 30 seconds. While 10 people reportedly should have been on duty to help coordinate traffic in the Newark airspace at the time, only four controllers were at their posts.

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 Photo by KENA BETANCUR/AFP via Getty Images

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy minced no words following the late April 28 incident, stating, "The system that we're using in air traffic control is incredibly old. This system is 25, 30 years old. We use floppy discs. We use copper wires. The system that we're using is not effective to control the traffic that we have in the airspace today."

Stu Burguiere highlighted some of the technological artifacts the FAA still relies upon to regulate American airspace in his BlazeTV documentary "Countdown to the Next Aviation Disaster."

In addition to copper wires, Burguiere discussed "paper flight strips," which Reason Foundation founder Robert Poole indicated are still used to track planes.

"It comes off a little printer at the controller's workstation," explained Poole.

Blaze News previously reported that the FAA has attempted to update the paper system for over four decades, but the plans remain behind schedule and over budget.

Burguiere also took a look at a November 2023 FAA report that indicated the agency is not only using floppy discs but employing equipment so old that there are no replacement parts available.

"Beacons used to determine the location of aircraft with working transponders," the report reads. "Includes 331 units that are 28-46 years old. Many of these systems are pre-digital, and many parts are unavailable because the manufacturers no longer exist or no longer support these systems."

After characterizing the systems in place as antiquated and faulty, Duffy said, "Of course it's safe," citing the kinds of reactive measures taken in Newark and elsewhere. While confident in the safety of American travel, Duffy appears both intolerant of further delays and unwilling to leave anything to chance.

— (@)  
 

Duffy stated that "we must get the best safety technology in the hands of controllers as soon as possible" and indicated that the Trump administration is "working to ensure the current telecommunications equipment is more reliable in the New York area by establishing a more resilient and redundant configuration with the local exchange carriers."

According to the FAA, Duffy and acting FAA Administrator Chris Rocheleau are taking several actions to improve upon existing air traffic control systems, such as adding three high-bandwidth telecommunications connections between the New York-based Standard Terminal Automation Replacement System and the Philadelphia TRACON; replacing copper telecommunications connections with fiber-optic technology from this millennium; and deploying a temporary backup system to the Philadelphia TRACON to provide redundancy during the cable switchover.

'It has to be fixed.'

Burguiere noted in his BlazeTV documentary that the FAA was not just way behind on critical technological upgrades but dangerously understaffed at critical hubs nationwide — stressing that "with 77% of key facilities below the FAA's own staffing threshold" as of December, "our skies are becoming a ticking time bomb."

It appears that Duffy has also taken the dearth of talent at the FAA to heart. The transportation secretary and Rocheleau are apparently committed to increasing controller staffing.

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 Katherine KY Cheng/Getty Images

The FAA indicated that the "area in the Philadelphia TRACON that handles Newark traffic has 22 fully certified controllers and 21 controllers and supervisors in training. Ten of those 21 controllers and supervisors are receiving on-the-job training. All 10 are certified on at least one position, and two are certified on multiple positions. We have a healthy pipeline with training classes filled through July 2026."

Blaze News asked the FAA to comment about the nationwide issue of old and aging systems and the perceived problem of understaffing at the FAA and was directed to Duffy's previous statements and May 12 press conference regarding the incident at the Newark airport.

Regarding staffing, the FAA said in a statement obtained by Blaze News, "The FAA and the National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA) collaborate to establish staffing goals for every facility, for every area in the facility, and for each shift. They update the goals yearly, and the goals are based on full staffing in the facility or area. There is a nationwide shortage of air traffic controllers, and the FAA for years has not met the staffing goal for the area that works Newark airspace."

"The persistent low staffing levels and low training success rate at New York Terminal Radar Approach Control (TRACON), or N90, were contributing factors to moving control of the Newark airspace to the Philadelphia TRACON in 2024," added the agency.

The airspace over Newark is far from the only domain experiencing troubles.

WAGA-TV reported that over 600 flights were delayed Monday at the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport on account of what officials termed a "runway equipment issue."

Duffy told NBC News Monday, "I'm concerned about the whole airspace."

"What you see in Newark is going to happen in other places across the country," continued the transportation secretary. "It has to be fixed."

 

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Video shows woman who missed her flight attempting to stop plane at Australian airport



Missing a flight can prove to be a costly mistake. Some people with the means and the time might reschedule and wait. Others might consider getting to their destination by way of alternative modes of transportation. A woman in Canberra, Australia, elected to pursue an entirely unorthodox course of action Wednesday. For her efforts, she will likely be grounded for the foreseeable future.

After missing her flight to Adelaide, a woman bypassed security at Canberra Airport and stole onto the tarmac, hoping to flag down a QantasLink Embraer E190AR plane.

"People were a bit flat-footed; they didn't seem to know what to do," Dennis Bilic, a witness who captured the incident on film, told 9News. "That was the weird part."

Bilic, who used the hashtag "runwaymodel," on X, noted that he and other witnesses were wondering, "Is anyone gonna stop her?"

Footage shows a woman in what appear to be sandals walking around the undercarriage of a ready, loaded, and sealed aircraft, trying to get the pilot's attention while an emergency alarm blares.

— (@)  
 

Simon Hales, another eyewitness to the futile hitchhiking efforts, said, "She's trying to yell at the pilot, she's trying to get his attention and jump up, it was bizarre."

Hales apparently noted on Meta, "Well that was a little different. Sitting at the airport in Canberra ready to come home. And then a lady who had clearly missed her flight decided she could still catch it. Pushed past the staff at the door and ran down onto the tarmac and ran up to the plane. Literally was standing underneath it next the front wheel."

Hales indicated the pilot killed the engines, having apparently spotted the woman below.

Flights at the airport were reportedly only delayed about 10 minutes.

Australian Federal Police arrested the woman around 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday. An AFP spokesman told Insider she has been charged with entering an airside area or security zone without permission, damaging property, and unlawful possession of cannabis.

The BBC reported the woman is set to appear in court on Friday and that bail has been denied.

While "bizarre," the woman's attempt was not unprecedented.

In 2015, Marc Rehmar rushed the tarmac at Denver International Airport, hoping to catch his departing flight. He ended up with two years of probation and 100 hours of community service.

In 2016, a Bolivian national who missed boarding at Spain's Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas Airport for a Ryanair flight bound for the Canary Islands ran across the tarmac with luggage in hand in a futile effort to flag down his flight.

The Guardian indicated the plane the man attempted to stop wasn't his own. He was subsequently arrested.

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'A little bit of fatherhood': Airline pilot goes viral after telling passengers what behavior won't fly



An American Airlines pilot is receiving high praise after a passenger's video documenting his recent preflight scolding went viral.

While some regarded the indiscriminate reprimand as patronizing, others appear happy to see someone finally put his foot down regarding bad flying etiquette. One Harvard Business School fellow has even indicated the pilot demonstrated a much-needed style of leadership.

Passenger Anna Leah Maltezos' video of the pilot's speech, posted to Instagram on July 26, has been seen well over 5.2 million times and presently has nearly 400,000 likes.

In the video, the captain of the American Airlines Boeing 737 can be heard over the plane's intercom setting down law and custom so that there can be no mistaking what sort of behavior won't fly.

"Remember, the flight attendants are primarily here for your safety," he said. "After that, they're going to make your flight more enjoyable. They're going to take care of you guys, but you will listen to what they have to say because they represent my will in the cockpit ... and my will is what matters."

The captain then listed a few of his high-altitude commandments, including:

  • "Be nice to each other";
  • "Be respectful to each other";
  • "Don't lean on people";
  • "Put your junk where it belongs";
  • "Don't pass out on other people or drool on 'em unless you've talked about it and they have a weather-assisted jacket."

"I shouldn't have to say that — you people should treat people the way you want to be treated — but I have to say it in every single flight because people don't and they're selfish and rude," he continued. "We won't have it."

The American Airlines captain had a great deal more to get off his chest in the form of what he characterized as "a little bit of fatherhood."

"The social experiment of listening to videos on speaker mode and talking on a cell phone in speaker mode — that is over," he said. "Over and done in this country. Nobody wants to hear your video. I know you think it's super sweet. It probably is, but it's your business, right? So keep it to yourself."

Toward the end of his speech, the pilot played Solomon, making quick work of dividing arm rests among the passengers by noting that "middle seaters ... own both armrests."

  

One of the most-liked comments on the video was, "The people complaining about his speech are the people that need to hear it."

Another comment, which received over 41,000 likes, similarly suggested, "If you're offended by this speech, congrats, you're the problem."

Maltezos, the passenger who captured the speech on video, told People, "It did seem oddly quiet afterward though ... maybe everyone was just so awed by the gift of double armrests they were left speechless."

Bill George, an executive fellow at Harvard Business School, told CNBC, "I say bravo to the American Airlines pilot. He has every right to do that. He’s the captain of the flight, and he’s in charge of what happens. ... If something goes wrong, he has the obligation to go back to the nearest airport and land ... and no passenger likes that."

To George's point, a United Airlines flight recently had to turn around hours into its journey from San Francisco to Taiwan owing to a "disruptive passenger," reported USA Today.

Brawls and other disruptions are unfortunately not uncommon.

According to the Federal Aviation Administration, there there have been at 1,123 unruly passenger reports so far this year. In 2022, there were 2,455. The previous year was particularly bad, with nearly 6,000 reports of unruly passengers.

George said leaders like the pilot in the video have "the right to set some standards of behavior."

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American Airlines plane TURNS AROUND after passenger calls flight attendant an 'offensive' name



An American Airlines plane headed to Guyana returned to JFK Airport after departure because a flight attendant was offended by what one of the passengers called him.

“I think you’ll be very understanding when you find out why the plane had to be diverted,” says Pat Gray, who’s clearly employing sarcasm.

What was the slur that was horrible enough to justify derailing the plans of every other passenger on the flight?

“Waiter.”

That’s right — the incredibly derogatory term the passenger used was the word waiter.

According to the passenger involved, Joel Ghansham, the incident began when he asked one of the crew members for help storing his luggage in the overhead compartments, as he recently underwent spinal surgery.

“Sounds fine so far,” Pat says.

However, the flight attendant responded with a curt, “I don’t get paid for that.”

Later into the flight, when drink orders were taken, the same flight attendant asked Ghansham if he wanted something to drink, to which Ghansham responded, “No, thank you, waiter.”

Outraged, the flight attendant told Ghansham that he had the power to turn the plane around, and Ghansham, understandably frustrated, replied, “You must be God, so you do it.”

And they did. The plane turned around mid flight and returned to JFK Airport.

“What a world we live in,” says Pat, completely dumbfounded.


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Chaos ensues after airline passenger forces open plane door mid-flight: 'I thought the plane was going to explode'



A passenger aboard an Asiana Airlines flight from Jeju Island to the South Korean city of Daegu was apparently in a rush to deplane, opening the door just minutes before landing.

A 33-year-old male seated next to an emergency exit reportedly forced open the door on an Airbus A321-200, which was carrying 194 souls including 48 primary and middle school children on their way to a sporting event.

When the door was opened, the plane was roughly 700 feet off the ground and traveling about 170 mph, reported Reuters.

Baek Hyunwoo, a spokesman for the airline, indicated the feat would normally be impossible owing to the difference in air pressure inside and outside the cabin; however, at the lower altitude, there was only a slight difference in air pressure.

Since the plane was descending, the flight attendants were reportedly buckled up and seated too far away to make a swift intervention.

Footage of the incident taken by another passenger shows strapped-down passengers holding on for dear life, with daylight and powerful gusts flooding the cabin.

 
\u201cMan arrested after opening door as plane prepared to land in South Korea, 9 people taken to hospital - Yonhap\u201d
— BNO News (@BNO News) 1685087257 
 

Another video of the incident shows the plane door ajar and various garments flapping in the wind.

 
\u201cDoor of Asiana Airlines plane opens in mid-air just before landing in South Korea; 9 people taken to hospital with breathing difficulties\u201d
— BNO News (@BNO News) 1685080680 
 

According to Sky News, some passengers suffered extreme ear pain after the door was opened.

One 44-year-old passenger told the Yonhap News Agency, "I thought the plane was going to explode. ... It looked like passengers next to the open door were fainting."

The mother of one of the schoolchildren aboard the plane said, "The children were shaking, crying, and frightened. Those sitting near the exit must have been shocked the most."

Despite the open door, the plane managed to land safely. There were no casualties.

Twelve people, all but one of whom were between the ages of 11 and 16, reportedly hyperventilated. Nine were taken to a hospital.

Kim Hyeong-su, an officer in the criminal affairs division of the Daegu Dongbu Police Station, indicated the man accused of opening the door could face charges of violating aviation security laws, reported the New York Times.

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Biden's climate envoy John Kerry will fly commercial after getting called out for emitting nearly 10 million pounds of carbon



John Kerry, the U.S. special presidential envoy for climate, was called out earlier this year for not practicing what he preached. When flying around the world warning of the dangers of carbon emissions, Kerry inflicted upon the environment a carbon footprint 300 times larger than the average American's in a single year. Facing continued scrutiny, he will now fly commercial — at least once.

Going where?

The State Department indicated that Kerry traveled to London in late October to participate in an onstage conversation with Chatham House about U.S. international efforts to battle so-called climate change.

From the U.K., the carbon-conscious climate envoy will fly to the United Arab Emirates.

After discussing "regional climate action" with Near Eastern oil barons and their beneficiaries, Kerry will head to Egypt. There he will lead the U.S. delegation to the 27th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27) in discussions about possible U.S. reparations to the third world for its bad weather.

The COP27 climate change conference will take place Nov. 6-18 in the Egyptian resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh, where air conditioning runs nonstop.

Going how?

A State Department spokesman told Fox News Digital that Kerry would be flying to COP27 in a commercial jet. It is presently unclear whether his flights to the U.K. and to the Emirates will similarly be on commercial airliners. Those details may soon come to light.

Judicial Watch filed a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit last week against the State Department for details of Kerry's office and its travel costs.

Tom Fitton, the president of Judicial Watch, stated, "The American people have a right to know what John Kerry is up to, what we're paying him to fly around the world, and who we pay to actually work for him."

Fitton added that Kerry was likely responsible for "more carbon distribution than anything else they are complaining about."

 
\u201c.@TomFitton: Why the unlawful secrecy about John Kerry\u2019s travel on luxury jets to fight \u201cclimate change\u201d?\nWatch: https://t.co/UTZ24JXzkV\u201d
— Judicial Watch \u2696\ufe0f (@Judicial Watch \u2696\ufe0f) 1667260801 
 

TheBlaze previously reported that Kerry had flown over 180,000 miles when conducting his affairs as climate envoy, despite having access to high-quality teleconferencing technologies with which he could remotely engage foreign dignitaries.

Analysis conducted by the Washington Free Beacon — of fuel consumption, mileage, travel plans, and projected exhaust figures — showed that Kerry was responsible for the emission of over 9.54 million pounds (4,772 tons) of carbon since March 2021.

By way of comparison, the average American's yearly carbon footprint is 16 tons.

The accounting for these figures took into consideration Kerry's 75 official travel announcements and destinations as well as his plane's average carbon dioxide production per mile, approximately 53.3 pounds.

Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) thought this revealed the Biden administration's hypocrisy, telling Fox News Digital, "Joe Biden launched his war on American energy on his first day in office, shutting down domestic energy production and making us reliant on our enemies."

"While Americans are struggling to afford gas and being lectured about ‘transitioning’ their energy use, Biden’s cabinet is jetting around the world wasting the same fossil fuels they say they want to ban," added Hawley.

Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) was even more forceful and direct in his critique, saying, "Smug, hypocritical, hammering middle-class families, and now this: John Kerry is one of the single biggest polluters and [greenhouse gas] emitters in the world. ... Once again, I call for him to resign."

Between carbon-heavy climate conferences, Kerry's personal jet also generated some significant emissions.

The Kerry family's private jet, a Gulfstream GIV-Sp, belched over 325 metric tons of carbon dioxide between January 2021 and July 2022.

The executive director of the energy advocacy organization Power the Future, Daniel Turner, told Fox News Digital that "John Kerry and the climate hypocrites who run the green movement ... refuse to voluntarily live how they want the rest of us to be forced to live."

Kerry previously defended his use of a private jet to pick up a climate change leadership award in Iceland, saying, "If you offset your carbon, it's the only choice for somebody like me who is traveling the world to win this battle."

Carbon offsetting involves paying off other people or organizations to reduce their emissions so you don't have to account for or adjust your own.

Kerry noted further, "What I'm doing, almost full time ... is working to win the battle on climate change."

Winning is not just a matter of killing American jobs and losing energy independence. For Kerry, winning also means removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, including the 5,000 tons he recently put there.

Biden's climate envoy says he's serious. Kerry told CBS News last winter that "to avert the worst consequences of climate crisis ... we have nine years left ... There is no room for BS any more."

Going why?

According to conference president Sameh Shoukry, the purpose of this year's COP27 gathering is to take "meaningful and tangible steps" to enforce the 2015 Paris climate accord.

The AP reported that some activists hope to see commitments to addressing "loss and damage," whereby wealthy nations agree to pay reparations to developing nations that have suffered problems resulting from nasty weather.

Ani Dasgupta, the CEO of globalist nonprofit World Resources Institute, wrote, "Developed countries should provide funds for addressing losses and damages not because of legal liability, but because supporting vulnerable countries is the right thing to do."

U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres recommended that Western nations confiscate profits from oil and gas companies and redistribute them to developing nations affected by bad weather.

Kerry has not yet committed the U.S. to these proposed reparations, but has indicated a willingness to discuss the possibility.

Kerry stated, "The U.S. recognizes that increased efforts must be made to avert, minimize, and address loss and damage associated with the adverse impacts of climate change."

Axios reported that Kerry's promises are constrained by domestic politics and that a Republican-led House could prevent the Biden administration from diverting American funds toward international climate indulgences.

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