UAE airlines Emirates and Etihad Airways said on Tuesday that their flights to and from the United States were operating normally despite a major air traffic disruption that caused hundreds of cancellations at several airports on the US East Coast.
An Emirates spokesperson told Khaleej Times that there had been no impact on the airline’s US operations.
An Etihad Airways spokesperson also confirmed that flights between the UAE and the United States were continuing according to schedule.
The disruption was caused by a communications failure at a Federal Aviation Administration facility in Philadelphia. The facility’s main communications line failed on Monday, and an attempt to switch to a backup connection revealed that the secondary line had also been accidentally cut by construction crews working near Newark, New Jersey.
The outage left air traffic controllers without essential radar and communications systems for several hours, creating widespread disruption across the region.
Newark Liberty International Airport was among the hardest-hit facilities. Commercial air traffic at the airport was brought close to a standstill, with no flights landing for about seven and a half hours.
More than 600 flights to and from Newark were cancelled, while more than 200 cancellations were recorded at Philadelphia International Airport. Airports in New York, including LaGuardia and John F. Kennedy International Airport, were also affected as airlines and air traffic controllers worked to manage the disruption.
US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the damaged communications lines had been repaired by Monday evening. He warned, however, that passengers would continue to experience delays while airlines worked through the backlog of disrupted flights.
The outage occurred as New York prepared to host the United Nations General Assembly, with world leaders, including US President Donald Trump, arriving in the city for the annual gathering.
The disruption has also renewed concerns about the resilience of the US air traffic control system. The Philadelphia FAA facility was linked to disruptions affecting Newark during spring 2025, raising questions about the reliability of critical communications infrastructure.
The FAA has said the failed primary communications circuit is scheduled to be replaced as part of a wider modernisation of the country’s air traffic management system.
For passengers travelling between the UAE and the United States, Emirates and Etihad’s confirmation that their services remain on schedule provides some reassurance. However, travellers have been advised to check their flight status with their airline before travelling to the airport because delays and cancellations elsewhere in the US network could continue to affect connecting flights.
Airlines are expected to keep monitoring the situation as the wider US aviation network works to clear the remaining disruption.
