US air traffic controllers are increasingly looking for additional employment and reporting ill, as they remain on duty unpaid during the federal closure, the transport chief has announced.
"These professionals are wearing thin," Sean Duffy informed Fox News on the weekend, as certain aircraft were halted on the California shoreline due to staffing shortages.
After the federal closure on 1 October, air traffic controllers, who are considered critical staff, were told to keep doing their duties uncompensated.
But a number have been missing, leading airports to stop or slow their flight operations, which has added to setbacks due to climate and additional factors.
More than 3,000 US flights were delayed on the weekend, and Duffy stated he expects the circumstances to grow worse.
"I am seeing the pressure," Duffy said in an discussion on a weekend program, adding that he had met with multiple professionals to listen to their worries firsthand.
"They're taking second jobs, they're out there searching, 'Can I work for Uber, can I secure another source of earnings to cover expenses?'" he continued.
The secretary further mentioned that on the previous day twenty-two notifications at airfields indicated flights would be delayed due to a lack of workers - one of the highest after the closure started.
The American federal closure entered its twenty-sixth day on Sunday, rendering it the second-longest halt in the past.
Duffy has repeatedly warned that flight authorities would reduce the number of planes in the air if there is a deficit of safety personnel.
In his interview, he would not answer directly when asked if it was safe to fly in the US, and instead made a direct appeal to the professionals.
"I need my controllers focused on the airspace, not on the monetary matters at their households," Duffy stated.
On that day, some planes were grounded at Los Angeles International Airport due to employee deficits, 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 north to the city of Oakland, California.
The Federal Aviation Administration alert went out at 8:45 AM in the morning on Sunday. Many flights were operating normally by midday.
Travel at Newark Liberty International Airport, however, were delayed an average of over an hour due to staffing shortages, and the FAA indicated Dallas Fort-Worth, the second most active airport in the US, could experience difficulties from reduced staff later in the day.
The FAA warned passengers in California to check with carriers about updated flight schedules.
The issue precedes the third match of the championship, which is due to be played in LA on Monday night, and approximately four weeks before the Thanksgiving break, one of the busiest times to travel by air in the United States.
Pressure on American aviation helped end a government shutdown in 2019. Back then, the halt had entered its fifth week and disrupted airline operations, including pilot training.
It led a number of flight controllers to stay home on the same day on January 25, 2019, briefly halting movement at New York's LaGuardia airport.
On that date, Donald Trump, who at the period was in his first term as president, agreed to sign a short-term spending bill, effectively ending the government shutdown after thirty-five days.
