Newark Liberty International Airport remains plagued by flight delays, despite continuing efforts to get the planes on time.

The airport ranked last in 2008 for on-time arrivals and was next-to-last in on-time departures.

And federal data released this month showed nearly 8,000 planes were delayed there in April. That’s about twice more than in September 2008, which was around the time officials slashed the number of peak flights there by 12.6 percent to ease delays.

Newark’s performance then improved slightly in May, though it still had 37 percent more delays than the September benchmark.

The Federal Aviation Administration cites the airport’s heavy volume and weather issues, saying the 5,292 storm-related delays there in April was among the highest ever.

Critics say federal officials haven’t modernized the facility and failed to provide enough staff to guide planes through.

(Source: WCBSTV)