Last Monday, April 28, a bad piece of copper wire sparked a radar and communications blackout for air traffic controllers in Newark, New Jersey, sources say, and caused air traffic control computer screens to go dark for 60 to 90 seconds, according to multiple sources. Controllers were unable to talk to aircraft during this time as well. In ATC recordings an air traffic controller is heard telling pilots that “approach lost all the radars. Three of the four radar screens went black and they have no frequency.”
After the event, several controllers requested and went on medical leave, saying the experience was “a traumatic event.” Air traffic controllers are entitled to at least 45 days away from the job and must be evaluated by a doctor before they can return to work if due to a traumatic event. “Due to the event, the controllers took absence under the Federal Employees Compensation Act. This program covers all federal employees that are physically injured or experience a traumatic event on the job,” the union representing air traffic controllers said in a statement Monday.
FAA is reportedly now trying to bring air traffic control supervisors from around the country to the ATC facility that controls the air space around Newark airport.
The incident and its ramifications have resulted in 42 cancellations and 46 delays just before 8:30 a.m. the following Tuesday, April 29