Air Traffic Controller Warns Major Airport is UNSAFE for Travel

In a chilling on-air moment Friday, a veteran air traffic controller issued a blunt warning: avoid Newark Liberty International Airport at all costs.

“It is not safe,” the controller told MSNBC’s Tom Costello, who relayed the stunning statement to viewers. “Don’t fly into Newark. Avoid Newark at all costs.”

The unfiltered plea underscored a spiraling staffing crisis at one of the nation’s busiest airports—just miles from Manhattan—and reignited concern over the Federal Aviation Administration’s growing vulnerability under the Trump administration’s sweeping federal shakeups.

“Cracks in the System”

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, sounding the alarm himself Thursday, said the FAA is “teetering on the edge” due to critical personnel shortages.

“You’re starting to see cracks in the system,” Duffy warned at a news conference. “It’s our job to fix them before there’s an incident we seriously regret.”

Duffy unveiled a $5,000 hiring bonus for new air traffic controller recruits and urged Americans to consider careers in aviation safety. “This is a public safety emergency. We need people. Now.”

Newark Chaos: “The Numbers Just Don’t Work”

Delays have rippled across the East Coast for weeks, with Newark Liberty International at the center. United Airlines—Newark’s largest carrier—announced Friday it is slashing 35 daily flights, citing “unmanageable conditions.”

United CEO Scott Kirby was blunt: “Over 20% of controllers have walked off the job. The FAA has told us Newark can no longer support the number of scheduled planes.”

Kirby added that the control tower has been “chronically understaffed for years,” but the situation has reached a breaking point.

Political Backlash and Musk’s Shadow Role

Inside sources say the current collapse traces back to March, when tensions exploded during a closed-door Cabinet meeting.

Duffy reportedly accused Elon Musk’s “Department of Government Efficiency” of pushing to fire FAA air traffic staff as part of a controversial cost-cutting crusade. The exchange between Duffy and Musk became “visibly heated,” according to The New York Times.

Musk denied the accusation, calling it “a lie,” though critics say Musk’s team has been quietly targeting “bureaucratic redundancy”—which, in this case, seems to include the people who prevent planes from crashing into one another.

Former Obama aide Dan Pfeiffer took to X Saturday to skewer Musk: “Great work @elonmusk,” he wrote, linking to the story about Newark’s chaos.

FAA in Turmoil Since Trump’s Return

The FAA has become a political pressure cooker since Donald Trump returned to power, with Democratic lawmakers warning that regulatory gutting is putting lives at risk. In January, a mid-air collision over Washington, D.C. left 67 people dead—the worst U.S. aviation disaster in over two decades.

Then came the February layoffs. Though Duffy claimed “zero air traffic controllers or critical safety staff were cut,” internal FAA documents later showed 400 total positions were slashed—raising red flags among safety advocates.

“This is what deregulation under the guise of ‘efficiency’ looks like,” said Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA). “It’s unsafe, unsustainable, and un-American.”

A System Near the Breaking Point

Becoming an air traffic controller has always required intense training and ironclad nerves. But the Trump-era chaos, political infighting, and lack of resources have made recruitment nearly impossible.

Aviation safety expert Sarah Markham summed it up: “This is a job where one mistake can kill hundreds. If you’re starving the pipeline and burning out your veterans, disasters aren’t a question of if—they’re a question of when.”

As the summer travel season ramps up, the warning is clear: the nation’s air traffic system is under pressure like never before.

And Newark? As one controller put it—don’t go.