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US air traffic controllers are more and more looking for second jobs and reporting ill, as they continue to work without pay amid the federal closure, the transport chief has announced.

"The controllers are becoming strained," Sean Duffy told a news outlet on the weekend, as certain aircraft were grounded on the California shoreline due to staffing shortages.

After the government shut down on October 1st, flight controllers, who are deemed critical staff, were told to keep doing their duties uncompensated.

But a number have been missing, causing airports to stop or slow their plane traffic, which has exacerbated setbacks due to weather and additional factors.

Over three thousand US flights were delayed on Sunday, and the secretary stated he expects the circumstances to deteriorate further.

"I observe the pressure," Duffy said in an interview on Sunday Morning Futures, adding that he had spoken to multiple professionals to listen to their concerns directly.

"They're taking second jobs, they're out there looking, 'Can I work for Uber, am I able to secure an alternative of earnings to make ends meet?'" he added.

Duffy further mentioned that on the previous day twenty-two notifications at airports indicated travel would be delayed due to a lack of workers - among the peak since the shutdown started.

The American federal closure reached its twenty-sixth day on the weekend, rendering it the second-longest halt in the past.

He has consistently cautioned that aviation regulators would slow down the number of planes in the sky if there is a deficit of security staff.

In his interview, he declined to respond directly when asked if it was secure to travel by air in the US, and instead issued a personal plea to the professionals.

"I need my controllers focused on the flight paths, not on the finances at their households," Duffy stated.

On that day, some planes were stopped at LAX due to employee deficits, leading to interruption at the fifth most active terminal in the country and one of the busiest in the world, as well as other flights extending upward to the metropolis of Oakland, California.

The FAA alert was issued at 8:45 AM in the morning on the weekend. Numerous trips were operating normally by midday.

Travel at Newark Airport, though, were delayed an average of 82 minutes due to personnel issues, and the FAA indicated Dallas Fort-Worth, the second-busiest airport in the country, could experience difficulties from reduced staff in the afternoon.

The agency advised travelers in California to check with airlines about revised departure times.

The situation precedes Game 3 of the World Series, which is due to be played in LA on Monday evening, and approximately four weeks before the Thanksgiving break, one of the busiest periods to fly in the United States.

Pressure on US air travel helped end a federal closure in two thousand nineteen. At the time, the halt had reached its fifth week and disrupted airline operations, including pilot training.

It led several air traffic controllers to remain absent on the identical date on January 25, 2019, briefly halting movement at LaGuardia Airport in New York.

On that date, the former president, who at the time was in his first term as president, consented to approve a temporary funding measure, bringing an end to the government shutdown after 35 days.