🔗 Share this article

US air traffic controllers are more and more looking for second jobs and reporting ill, as they remain on duty unpaid during the federal closure, the transportation secretary has stated.

"The controllers are wearing thin," the official informed a news outlet on Sunday, as certain aircraft were halted on the California shoreline due to staffing shortages.

Following the federal closure on 1 October, flight controllers, who are considered critical staff, were instructed to keep doing their duties uncompensated.

But some have been absent, causing terminals to halt or reduce their plane traffic, which has exacerbated delays due to weather and additional factors.

Over 3,000 American flights were postponed on the weekend, and the secretary stated he anticipates the circumstances to deteriorate further.

"I am seeing the stress," Duffy said in an discussion on a weekend program, adding that he had spoken to multiple professionals to listen to their worries firsthand.

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

The secretary added that on the previous day twenty-two notifications at airports said flights would be held up due to a lack of employees - one of the highest after the shutdown began.

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

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

In his conversation, he declined to respond directly when questioned if it was safe to fly in the US, and instead made a direct appeal to controllers.

"I need my controllers concentrating on the flight paths, not on the finances at home," the official stated.

On Sunday, certain flights were grounded at LAX due to staffing shortages, causing interruption at the fifth-busiest terminal in the nation and among the most crowded in the world, as well as additional travel stretching north to the city of Oakland, California.

The FAA notice was issued at 08:45 local time on Sunday. Numerous trips were back on schedule by midday.

Travel at Newark Airport, however, were delayed an average of 82 minutes due to staffing shortages, and the FAA said DFW, the second most active airport in the country, could experience problems from low staffing in the afternoon.

The agency warned passengers in the state to check with airlines about revised flight schedules.

The situation comes ahead of Game 3 of the World Series, which is due to be played in Los Angeles on Monday night, and approximately four weeks prior to the Thanksgiving holiday, among the peak periods to fly in the United States.

Pressure on American aviation contributed to ending a federal closure in two thousand nineteen. At the time, the shutdown had entered its fifth week and disrupted flight services, including pilot training.

It led a number of air traffic controllers to stay home on the same day on January 25, 2019, briefly halting movement at New York's LaGuardia airport.

On that date, the former president, who at the time was in his first term as leader, agreed to sign a short-term spending bill, effectively ending the government shutdown after thirty-five days.