Sec. Duffy tells 'Fox & Friends' that closed Newark airport runway could reopen within a week

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy told Fox News' Steve Doocy connected Friday that Newark Liberty International Airport’s closed runway could reopen successful little than 2 weeks — a determination that helium hopes volition easiness the ongoing delays caused by its closure.

Duffy said Newark's closed runway volition beryllium reopened "very quickly" and that the runway could beryllium acceptable "maybe successful the adjacent week."

After being asked what is being done to alleviate the delays and cancellations facing airports crossed the country, Duffy gave a rundown of what helium thinks are the large issues causing these delays.

"So perceive — what's happening is we person upwind — it happens astatine this clip of year, fig one. Number two, we person a constricted magnitude of controllers with 3,000 abbreviated nationally. And then, specifically successful Newark, we person our runway that's been unopen down. It's gonna unfastened up precise quickly," helium told Doocy. "The Port Authority has crushed it connected speed."

NEWARK AIRPORT DISRUPTIONS LEAVE AIRLINE FLYERS SCRAMBLING AS EXPERTS SHARE TIPS FOR NOT BEING 'STRANDED'

Newark Airport has faced steep delays aft a runway was closed owed to repairs and a nationwide shortage of aerial postulation controllers weighed connected its operations.  (Getty)

Duffy continued by noting that portion it tin beryllium frustrating for aerial travelers to person their flights delayed oregon canceled, stating that the Department of Transportation’s (DOT) apical precedence remains ensuring rider safety.

"Whether it's weather, we mightiness person immoderate shortages of aerial postulation controllers. You cognize that we had telecom issues successful Philadelphia, oregon successful Newark, retired of the Philly TRACON. So those factors each travel into play. And the cardinal is your safety," Duffy said. "A batch of the questions that travel though — is it harmless to fly? And of people it is. We person truthful galore redundancies successful place, but we person to hole the system."

The proscription caput past dove into the details of however helium predicts departures retired of Newark Airport volition amended aft the runway and different improvements are complete.

"So 28 departures an hour. It utilized to beryllium 50-54," helium claimed. "So erstwhile the runway opens, we'll get to 34."

LAWMAKERS REACT TO NEWARK AIRPORT CHAOS: ‘YOUR FAMILY DESERVES TO KNOW YOU'LL BE SAFE'

Duffy revealed that helium has offered retirement-age aerial postulation controllers peculiar incentives to support experienced workers connected the occupation and amended efficiency.  (AP Photo/Rod Lamkey, Jr., near and Spencer Platt/Getty Images), right. )

Another contented plaguing Newark Airport, according to Duffy, is the information that caller aerial postulation controllers from different airspaces can't simply beryllium brought successful to alleviate the shortage; they indispensable archetypal beryllium trained connected Newark's airspace.

Duffy said determination are presently 16 aerial postulation controllers successful grooming astatine Newark, and that it typically takes six months to a twelvemonth to go certified successful a caller airspace.

"Again, I can't conscionable drawback my fingers and hole the problems that Pete Buttigieg and Joe Biden near for me," helium said.

After being asked by Doocy astir different contented facing the aerial postulation controller manufacture – the ample numbers of controllers retiring – Duffy laid retired his program for incentivizing retirement-age controllers to enactment connected the job.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE COVERAGE OF MEDIA AND CULTURE

"Air postulation controllers tin discontinue aft 25 years of service. I've offered them a 20% upfront bonus to enactment connected aft their eligible day of retirement," helium said. "This is simply a authorities occupation wherever you are paid precise well. So to springiness them that bonus, I deliberation it matters."

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Duffy said his extremity is to support experienced controllers portion besides expanding the pipeline to get much young radical into the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Academy and moving successful the industry.