Flights are disrupted across US Northeast because of technical problems at a key air traffic center - MyNorthwest.com

Hundreds of flights were canceled across the U.S. Northeast on Monday after technical problems shut down operations at multiple major New York City-area airports for several hours, coinciding with the United Nations General Assembly and the arrival of foreign leaders. The FAA said a primary circuit failed at an air traffic facility in Philadelphia, disrupting flights into Philadelphia and also Kennedy, LaGuardia, and Newark. It later found a backup fiber optic line had also been cut, with the break located between New Brunswick and Newark, New Jersey, due to construction. FAA administrator Brian Bedford estimated the fiber repair could take about 13 hours. Some service resumed at LaGuardia and Philadelphia by early afternoon, though delays were expected to continue.