FAA Temporarily Halts Flights To NYC After Coronavirus Test

NEW YORK, NY — The Federal Aviation Administration Saturday halted all arriving flights at New York City airports, citing staffing issues at the New York Air Traffic Control Center after a trainee tested positive for the new coronavirus.

A report by Reuters said the ground stop also affected arriving flights in Philadelphia. The ground has been lifted at all airports and no active alerts are in place for New York JFK, Newark, LaGuardia or Philadelphia, according to the FAA's website.

The FAA issued an initial statement about the case Friday, saying the air traffic control tower at JFK underwent a deep cleaning after the trainee, an FAA technician, tested positive for the virus. According to the statement, the trainee did not enter the tower cab when he was in the building.

A statement made by the FAA Saturday said the trainee was last at the facility March 17, and the organization is working with local health officials to determine how many personnel may have interacted with the trainee.

Should the FAA be required to issue additional ground stops, according to the statement, flights will be rerouted to other airports to ensure continued operations.