US airport's control tower evacuated over burning smell

The control tower at Newark airport outside New York City has been temporarily evacuated and officials ordered a ground stop after a burning smell, US federal aviation authorities say.

"Arrivals and departures are temporarily paused at Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey after air traffic controllers evacuated the tower because of a burning smell coming from an elevator," the FAA said.

The pause in traffic at the busy airport came about 7.30am on Monday.

Controllers returned to their station and the ground stop was lifted about half an hour later.

The incident came the morning after an Air Canada Express jet collided with a fire truck while landing at New York's LaGuardia airport, killing both pilots, injuring dozens and closing the facility, authorities said.

US aviation faces chronic shortages of air traffic controllers and a separate shortfall of Transportation Security Administration officers due to a partial government shutdown that has led to delays, long security lines and heightened safety concerns across airports around the country.