About 10 percent of flights to and from Newark were canceled from the start of last week through Wednesday, according to data from FlightAware, a flight tracking service. The two other airports serving the New York region fared much better. Over the same period, only about 2 percent of flights were canceled at LaGuardia Airport and 1 percent at Kennedy International Airport. Newark also saw far more delays than the other two airports.
The disruptions are particularly frustrating for United Airlines, which counts Newark as one of its eight airport hubs and dominates traffic there. More than two out of three flights to and from the airport are sold by United. A variety of airlines account for the remaining flights, according to Cirium, an aviation data firm.
In an email to employees this week, United’s chief executive, Scott Kirby, said flights to and from the airport remained safe. Newark is a “crown jewel of the region,” he said, but the airport is overwhelmed, with more flights scheduled on most afternoons and evenings than the F.A.A. has said it can handle.
“This math doesn’t work,” he said. “Especially when there is weather, staffing issues or technology breakdowns — the airspace, taxiways and runways get backed up and gridlock occurs.”
To solve the problem, Mr. Kirby said, the F.A.A. should reverse a 2016 decision that loosened limitations on the number of flights scheduled at the airport in an effort to promote competition at Newark.
