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US air traffic controllers are more and more looking for additional employment and reporting ill, as they remain on duty without pay amid the government shutdown, the transportation secretary has stated.

"These professionals are becoming strained," Sean Duffy informed a news outlet on the weekend, as certain aircraft were halted on the California shoreline due to personnel deficits.

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

But a number have been absent, leading terminals to halt or reduce their flight operations, which has exacerbated setbacks due to weather and other issues.

More than 3,000 American flights were postponed on Sunday, and Duffy stated he anticipates the circumstances to deteriorate further.

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

"They are pursuing second jobs, they're out there looking, 'Should I work for Uber, can I secure an alternative of earnings to make ends meet?'" he added.

The secretary added that on Saturday twenty-two notifications at airfields indicated travel would be held up due to a shortage of workers - one of the highest after the shutdown began.

The American federal closure entered its 26th day on the weekend, making it the second-longest shutdown in the past.

He has repeatedly warned that flight authorities would slow down the number of planes in the air if there is a deficit of security staff.

In his conversation, he declined to respond straightforwardly when questioned if it was secure to travel by air in the United States, and instead issued a personal plea to the professionals.

"I need my staff concentrating on the airspace, not on the finances at their households," the official stated.

On that day, some planes were grounded at Los Angeles International Airport due to staffing shortages, causing disruption at the fifth most active terminal in the country and among the most crowded in the world, as well as other flights stretching north to the metropolis of Oakland, California.

The FAA notice was issued at 8:45 AM in the morning on the weekend. Numerous trips were back on schedule before noon.

Flights at Newark Liberty International Airport, however, were postponed an mean of 82 minutes due to personnel issues, and the authority indicated Dallas Fort-Worth, the second most active airfield in the US, could encounter problems from reduced staff in the afternoon.

The FAA warned passengers in California to consult carriers about updated flight schedules.

The issue comes ahead of Game 3 of the championship, which is due to be played in LA on Monday night, and approximately four weeks prior to the Thanksgiving holiday, one of the busiest times to fly in the United States.

Strain on American aviation contributed to ending a government shutdown in 2019. At the time, the shutdown had entered its fifth week and disrupted flight services, including aviator instruction.

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

On that date, Donald Trump, who at the period was in his initial presidency as president, agreed to sign a short-term spending bill, bringing an end to the government shutdown after thirty-five days.