Newark airport route where United plane crashed into truck is notoriously dangerous: expert

Dozens of pilots reported near-misses and other problems on the Newark Liberty International Airport approach where United Flight 169 smashed into a truck this weekend.

Years of confidential reports submitted to the Federal Aviation Administration detail problems with “Stadium Visual Rwy 29” — a notoriously difficult and dangerous landing route, know for its irregularities and potential hazards.

That approach is infamous for a sharp, 70-degree turn, an unusually short runway, nonstandard guidance lights, and other challenges, said Robert Joslin, former FAA’s chief scientific and technical advisor.

“If you undershoot it, then you’re out there in the wild west,” Joslin, who is now a professor at the Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, told The Post.

Joslin said veering to the right of the runway — as United 169 appears to have done — puts passenger planes right over New Jersey Turnpike traffic.

Aircraft have to maintain a certain angle to safely land on runway 29 — the airport’s shortest landing strip at around 6,700 feet — and they must maintain an altitude of exactly 500 feet.

Making matters worse, the orientation lights (“PAPI lights”) are on the right side of the runway, which is less common and can be “confusing” for pilots who aren’t expecting it, Joslin explained.

Normally, pilots use an “instrument approach” to land on the runway, but if air traffic is high, a pilot can request a “visual approach,” in which they guide the plane by sight.

Visual approaches are faster and more efficient, but they are also more challenging and rely on the skill and experience of the pilot.

Dozens of pilots have filed complaints about Stadium Visual Rwy 29 on the FAA’s confidential reporting system.

Joslin insisted the approach is perfectly safe if a pilot does everything right.

He also wouldn’t speculate on what, exactly, went wrong.

“There’s always extenuating circumstances, and we’re not privy to those yet.”