New takeoff and landing limits are in effect at Newark Airport, but how carriers will cut back flights is still a matter of debate.
FAA Flight Caps At Newark Take Effect As Airlines Face Cutback Decisions
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has imposed temporary flight caps at Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR), limiting operations to 28 arrivals and 28 departures per hour. This measure, introduced to address widespread delays caused by runway construction, air traffic controller shortages, and equipment failures, is now in effect (as of May 20, 2025). However, the FAA has yet to establish a final, binding mechanism for how each airline must comply with the cuts.
Airline Meetings and Voluntary Adjustments
To implement the reductions fairly, the FAA held one-on-one meetings with major US carriers, including United, Delta, American, JetBlue, Spirit, Alaska, and Allegiant, between May 14 and 16, 2025. These discussions were intended to balance operational capacity with the urgent need to reduce congestion.
Initially, the FAA asked carriers to voluntarily adjust their schedules to meet the hourly caps. Four days later, the FAA issued an interim order. This order does not prescribe which specific flights or carriers must be cut. Instead, it sets the airport-wide limits and prohibits new flights or service launches without FAA approval.
United Airlines’ Preemptive Cuts
United Airlines, which operates roughly 70% of Newark’s flights, has taken a proactive stance. It announced plans to reduce its schedule by about 35 round trips per day, or approximately 10% of its operations at EWR. While this makes up a large portion of the required reductions, it will not meet the total cutback needed to bring the airport in line with the new capacity limits.
United has also gone out of its way to publicly support the FAA and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy:
“Reducing the number of flights scheduled at Newark will help ensure that we can safely and reliably operate the flights that remain on the schedule, which is why we proactively reduced our schedule last month. For the first quarter of 2025, Newark was the most on-time airport in the New York area. We are confident that the decisive steps taken by Sec. Duffy, including his leadership on matching the airport’s capacity to its operational limitations, will have it back operating reliably for the benefit of our customers.”
One ulterior motive for this praise is that the FAA’s order is not final. The agency has indicated it will allow “continued dialogue” before issuing a final ruling on which carriers may need to make further reductions. United hopes that other carriers will be required to bear the burden as well.
Thus far, the FAA has declined United’s push to reintroduce slot controls by reclassifying Newark as a “Level 3” airport like nearby New York (JFK).
What About Foreign Carriers?
The interim order applies to US-based airlines. Foreign carriers are currently exempt from mandatory reductions, though they are barred from adding new flights. Instead, they are only encouraged to consider adjustments.
Timeline of Flight Caps at Newark
Flight cutbacks will follow this three-part plan:
- Until June 15, 2025: Cap set at 28 arrivals and 28 departures per hour during runway construction
- June 16 to October 25, 2025: Cap increases to 34 arrivals and departures per hour once daily construction ends
- Saturdays through December 2025: Cap remains at 28 flights per hour due to continued Saturday-only construction
FAA Acting Administrator Chris Rocheleau summarized the agency’s goal:
“Our goal is to relieve the substantial inconvenience to the traveling public from excessive flight delays due to construction, staffing challenges, and recent equipment issues, which magnify as they spread through the National Airspace System.”
Already, the voluntary reductions have reduced flight delays and cancellations, though roughly 20% of flights are still experiencing delays out of Newark this week.
CONCLUSION
While the FAA’s temporary cap at Newark is now in effect, the full picture of how flight reductions will be distributed remains uncertain. Airlines have been asked to self-regulate for now, with a final order still pending. United has taken early action, but further cuts may be necessary to stay within the new operational ceiling. As the FAA continues talks with carriers, the coming weeks will determine whether voluntary compliance is enough or if the agency itself will need to decide which flights are cut.
There is an easy market based solution to this problem which the not very free market oriented Trump Administration refuses to consider: base landing fees on slot usage instead of weight. All landings take up essentially the same amount of capacity, but the present pricing system incentivizes inefficient usage of slots by smaller planes with less capacity rather than fewer planes with larger capacities. The FAA could expand the passenger capacity of the airport while reducing slot usage.
No, not all landings take up the same capacity. You need more separation with larger planes, which slows down the overall operation. Airfield capacity is decreased when you have more larger planes and it doesn’t help with delays.
Also, the FAA cannot change their fee mechanism without congressional approval, and there is zero desire in congress to do just that. Airport authorities, however, do have that authority, but notice how none of them use it? Why? Because it’s a bad idea and isn’t effective. Not to mention, you need the airport to be slot controlled and the FAA isn’t changing that status with EWR.
Got a Euro trip via EWR in late June.
If UA is to cancel the flights, please let me know in advance so I can claw for space on Delta.
That’s why I never pre-pay for hotels in Europe.
They’ll decide based on which airline gifts Trump the nicest plane.
New movements levels will be in place for a long time. Staffing and equipment issues are nowhere close to being solved.