🔗 Share this article

US air traffic controllers are more and more seeking second jobs and reporting ill, as they remain on duty without pay during the federal closure, the transportation secretary has stated.

"These professionals are becoming strained," Sean Duffy informed a news outlet on Sunday, as certain aircraft were grounded on the California shoreline due to staffing shortages.

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

But some have been missing, causing terminals to stop or slow their plane traffic, which has exacerbated setbacks caused by climate and other issues.

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

"I observe the pressure," Duffy said in an interview on a weekend program, noting that he had spoken to several controllers to listen to their concerns directly.

"They're taking side jobs, they're out there looking, 'Should I work for Uber, can I secure an alternative of earnings to cover expenses?'" he added.

Duffy further mentioned that on the previous day twenty-two notifications at airfields said flights would be delayed due to a shortage of workers - among the peak after the closure began.

The American federal closure reached its 26th day on the weekend, making it the second most extended halt in the past.

He has repeatedly warned that flight authorities would slow down the number of planes in the sky if there is a shortage of safety personnel.

In his interview, he declined to respond straightforwardly when asked if it was safe to travel by air in the United States, and instead made a direct appeal to the professionals.

"I need my staff focused on the flight paths, not on the monetary matters at home," the official stated.

On that day, some planes were stopped at Los Angeles International Airport due to staffing shortages, leading to disruption at the fifth most active airport in the country and among the most crowded in the globe, as well as additional travel extending upward to the city of Oakland, California.

The FAA notice went out at 8:45 AM local time on the weekend. Many flights were back on schedule before noon.

Flights at Newark Airport, though, were delayed an average of 82 minutes due to staffing shortages, and the authority indicated DFW, the second-busiest airfield in the country, could encounter problems from low staffing later in the day.

The FAA warned passengers in the state to check with carriers about updated flight schedules.

The issue precedes the third match of the World Series, which is scheduled in LA on Monday evening, and about one month prior to the Thanksgiving holiday, among the peak times to fly in the US.

Pressure on American aviation helped end a federal closure in two thousand nineteen. Back then, the shutdown had entered its fifth week and disrupted airline operations, including aviator instruction.

It prompted a number of flight controllers to remain absent on the same day on January 25, 2019, briefly halting travel at LaGuardia Airport in New York.

That same day, the former president, who at the time was in his first term as leader, agreed to sign a temporary funding measure, effectively ending the government shutdown after 35 days.