A major safety upgrade is coming to Newark Airport with technology designed to help prevent dangerous close calls on the runway.<\/p>\n
The nation’s top transportation officials will be at Newark to install a new surface radar system. It’s designed to help controllers better track planes and vehicles moving around the airport. Most importantly, it will help prevent runway incidents<\/a>.<\/p>\n Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford will be at the airport Tuesday morning for the installation of a new surface movement radar (SMR).<\/p>\n The FAA says the technology will improve safety by giving controllers better information about what’s happening.\u00a0<\/p>\n This comes as airport safety is on travelers’ minds after the\u00a0deadly runway incident<\/a>\u00a0at LaGuardia Airport in March.\u00a0Two pilots died<\/a>, and dozens of people were injured after an Air Canada plane and a Port Authority emergency truck\u00a0collided on a runway<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n The FAA has not said this project is a response to that crash. It’s part of a much broader modernization already underway at Newark.\u00a0<\/p>\n The project includes replacing older, copper-based telecommunications with fiber and moving more of the system to digital technology.\u00a0<\/p>\n For passengers, the FAA says the upgrades could mean fewer delays and departure times could become more predictable.<\/p>\n Better aircraft tracking and flow management could also help minimize noise for residents nearby, according to transportation officials.\u00a0<\/p>\n