🔗 Share this article

American flight controllers are increasingly looking for second jobs and reporting ill, as they remain on duty unpaid during the federal closure, the transport chief has announced.

"The controllers are becoming strained," Sean Duffy told a news outlet on Sunday, as some flights were halted on the Californian coast due to personnel deficits.

After the government shut down on October 1st, flight controllers, who are deemed essential workers, were instructed to continue performing their duties without pay.

But a number have been absent, causing airports to halt or reduce their plane traffic, which has added to setbacks due to climate and additional factors.

Over 3,000 US flights were delayed on the weekend, and the secretary said he expects the situation to deteriorate further.

"I observe the stress," he remarked in an discussion on a weekend program, noting that he had spoken to multiple professionals to listen to their concerns directly.

"They're taking side jobs, they're out there looking, 'Can I drive Uber, can I secure an alternative of income to cover expenses?'" he added.

The secretary further mentioned that on Saturday 22 alerts at airports indicated travel would be delayed due to a shortage of workers - one of the highest after the closure started.

The US government shutdown reached its twenty-sixth day on the weekend, making it the second-longest shutdown in history.

Duffy has repeatedly warned that aviation regulators would reduce the number of planes in the sky if there is a shortage of safety personnel.

In his interview, he declined to respond directly when questioned if it was safe to travel by air in the US, and instead made a direct appeal to the professionals.

"I need my controllers focused on the flight paths, not on the monetary matters at their households," the official stated.

On that day, some planes were grounded at LAX due to staffing shortages, causing disruption at the fifth most active airport in the nation and among the most crowded in the world, as well as other flights stretching north to the city of Oakland, California.

The Federal Aviation Administration notice went out at 08:45 in the morning on Sunday. Many flights were operating normally before noon.

Travel at Newark Liberty International Airport, however, were delayed an mean of over an hour due to staffing shortages, and the authority indicated Dallas Fort-Worth, the second most active airport in the US, could experience difficulties from low staffing in the afternoon.

The FAA warned passengers in the state to check with airlines about revised departure times.

The situation comes ahead of the third match of the championship, which is scheduled in Los Angeles on Monday night, and about one month prior to the Thanksgiving break, one of the busiest periods to travel by air in the United States.

Pressure on US air travel contributed to ending a federal closure in two thousand nineteen. Back then, the shutdown had reached its fifth week and affected airline operations, including aviator instruction.

It prompted a number of flight controllers to stay home on the identical date on January 25, 2019, briefly halting movement at New York's LaGuardia airport.

On that date, Donald Trump, who at the time was in his initial presidency as president, agreed to sign a short-term spending bill, effectively ending the government shutdown after 35 days.