🔗 Share this article

US air traffic controllers are increasingly seeking additional employment and reporting ill, as they continue to work without pay during the federal closure, the transportation secretary has announced.

"These professionals are becoming strained," the official informed a news outlet on Sunday, as some flights were halted on the California shoreline due to staffing shortages.

Following the federal closure on October 1st, air traffic controllers, who are considered critical staff, were told to continue performing their duties without pay.

But some have been absent, causing terminals to stop or slow their flight operations, which has added to delays due to climate and other issues.

More than three thousand US flights were postponed on the weekend, and the secretary said he expects the circumstances to deteriorate further.

"I observe the stress," Duffy remarked in an interview on a weekend program, noting that he had met with several controllers to listen to their worries firsthand.

"They are pursuing side jobs, they're out there looking, 'Should I drive Uber, am I able to secure an alternative of income to cover expenses?'" he continued.

Duffy further mentioned that on the previous day twenty-two notifications at airfields indicated travel would be delayed due to a shortage of employees - among the peak after the shutdown began.

The American federal closure reached its twenty-sixth day on the weekend, rendering it the second most extended shutdown in history.

Duffy has consistently cautioned that flight authorities would slow down the number of aircraft in the sky if there is a shortage of security staff.

In his interview, he would not answer straightforwardly when questioned if it was safe to travel by air in the United States, and instead issued a personal plea to controllers.

"I require my controllers concentrating on the flight paths, not on the monetary matters at home," the official stated.

On that day, certain flights were grounded at LAX due to staffing shortages, causing disruption at the fifth most active airport in the nation and one of the busiest in the world, as well as additional travel extending upward to the metropolis of Oakland.

The Federal Aviation Administration alert was issued at 08:45 in the morning on Sunday. Many flights were operating normally by midday.

Flights at Newark Liberty International Airport, however, were postponed an average of over an hour due to staffing shortages, and the authority indicated Dallas Fort-Worth, the second-busiest airfield in the US, could experience problems from low staffing in the afternoon.

The FAA warned travelers in California to consult carriers about revised flight schedules.

The situation precedes Game 3 of the championship, which is scheduled in LA on Monday evening, and about one month prior to the Thanksgiving holiday, one of the busiest times to travel by air in the United States.

Strain on US air travel contributed to ending a federal closure in 2019. At the time, the halt had reached its fifth week and disrupted airline operations, including aviator instruction.

It led several flight controllers to stay home on the identical date on 25 January 2019, temporarily stopping travel at New York's LaGuardia airport.

On that date, Donald Trump, who at the period was in his initial presidency as leader, agreed to sign a temporary funding measure, effectively ending the federal closure after thirty-five days.