Newark flights briefly suspended after control tower was evacuated due to smoke
kena betancur / AFP via Getty Images
- Flights were temporarily suspended at Newark Airport after a control tower was evacuated due to smoke.
- The FAA said smoke from an elevator prompted air traffic controllers to evacuate the tower.
- Nearby LaGuardia Airport is closed after a plane collided with a ground vehicle, killing two pilots.
Flights at Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey were temporarily suspended on Monday after a control tower was evacuated due to smoke, the FAA said. Operations have since returned to normal.
The FAA said air traffic controllers evacuated the tower after a burning smell from an elevator was detected around 7:30 a.m. local time. Personnel returned to the tower around 8:30 a.m. local time, they said.
The suspension at Newark comes as one of New York's other airport hubs — LaGuardia — is also facing disruption on Monday following a collision late Sunday. LaGuardia will remain closed to flights until 2 p.m. local time.
An Air Canada aircraft collided with a ground vehicle at the airport, resulting in the death of two pilots and several people being injured.
The Air Canada Express flight, a CRJ-900 operated by Jazz Aviation — a Canadian regional carrier that runs shorthaul flights on behalf of Air Canada — collided with a Port Authority rescue and firefighting vehicle on the airfield shortly after landing, authorities said.