🔗 Share this article

US air traffic controllers are increasingly seeking additional employment and reporting ill, as they remain on duty unpaid amid the federal closure, the transportation secretary has stated.

"These professionals are becoming strained," Sean Duffy informed Fox News on Sunday, as some flights were grounded on the Californian coast due to staffing shortages.

After the federal closure on October 1st, flight controllers, who are considered essential workers, were told to continue performing their jobs uncompensated.

But a number have been missing, causing terminals to halt or reduce their plane traffic, which has exacerbated setbacks due to climate and other issues.

Over 3,000 American flights were delayed on the weekend, and Duffy said he expects the circumstances to deteriorate further.

"I observe the pressure," Duffy remarked in an discussion on Sunday Morning Futures, noting that he had spoken to several controllers to hear their worries firsthand.

"They're taking side jobs, they're out there searching, 'Should I work for Uber, am I able to secure another source of earnings to cover expenses?'" he added.

The secretary added that on Saturday twenty-two notifications at airports said travel would be delayed due to a lack of employees - one of the highest since the shutdown started.

The US government shutdown reached its 26th day on the weekend, making it the second most extended halt in the past.

Duffy has repeatedly warned that flight authorities would slow down the quantity of planes in the air if there is a shortage of safety personnel.

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

"I require my staff focused on the airspace, not on the finances at their households," the official stated.

On that day, some planes were stopped at Los Angeles International Airport due to staffing shortages, causing interruption at the fifth-busiest terminal in the nation and one of the busiest in the world, as well as additional travel extending upward to the city of Oakland.

The FAA alert was issued at 8:45 AM local time on Sunday. Numerous trips were operating normally by midday.

Travel at Newark Airport, though, were postponed an mean of over an hour due to staffing shortages, and the authority said DFW, the second-busiest airport in the country, could experience difficulties from low staffing later in the day.

The agency warned passengers in California to check with airlines about updated departure times.

The situation comes ahead of Game 3 of the championship, which is scheduled in LA on Monday night, and about one month prior to the Thanksgiving break, one of the busiest times to fly in the US.

Pressure on American aviation helped end a government shutdown in 2019. At the time, the shutdown had entered its fifth week and disrupted airline operations, including aviator instruction.

It prompted several flight controllers to stay home on the same day on 25 January 2019, briefly halting travel at New York's LaGuardia airport.

That same day, Donald Trump, who at the time was in his initial presidency as leader, agreed to sign a temporary funding measure, bringing an end to the federal closure after 35 days.