Overview

• The DOT inspector general will begin an audit in early August to review the FAA’s July 2024 transfer of Newark airspace control from Long Island to Philadelphia.
• The FAA relocated Newark’s radar responsibilities to Philadelphia to relieve staffing pressures at New York’s TRACON hub, but controllers and lawmakers have raised concerns over its rollout.
• In spring 2025, Philadelphia TRACON experienced two 90-second outages in radar and communications after a burnt copper line failure and redundant system breakdown.
• The Philadelphia facility fields 44 controllers managing Newark’s sector, yet only 22 are fully certified and the nation faces a shortfall of more than 3,000 air traffic controllers.
• The audit will examine FAA management decisions, infrastructure resilience and system redundancy as part of a broader effort to modernize the nation’s air traffic control network.