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American flight controllers are increasingly looking for second jobs and reporting ill, as they remain on duty without pay amid the federal closure, the transportation secretary has stated.

"These professionals are becoming strained," Sean Duffy told Fox News on the weekend, as some flights were halted on the California shoreline due to personnel deficits.

Following the government shut down on 1 October, air traffic controllers, who are considered essential workers, were told to continue performing their duties uncompensated.

But some have been absent, causing airports to halt or reduce their plane traffic, which has added to delays caused by climate and additional factors.

More than three thousand US flights were delayed on Sunday, and the secretary stated he anticipates the circumstances to grow worse.

"I am seeing the stress," he said in an discussion on a weekend program, noting that he had met with multiple professionals to hear their concerns directly.

"They're taking second jobs, they're out there looking, 'Can I drive Uber, can I secure an alternative of income to cover expenses?'" he continued.

Duffy added that on the previous day 22 alerts at airports indicated flights would be delayed due to a lack of workers - one of the highest since the shutdown started.

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

He has consistently cautioned that flight authorities would slow down the number of aircraft in the sky if there is a deficit of security staff.

In his interview, he would not answer directly when asked if it was safe to travel by air in the United States, and instead issued a direct appeal to controllers.

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

On that day, certain flights were stopped at LAX due to employee deficits, leading to disruption at the fifth-busiest airport in the country and one of the busiest in the globe, as well as other flights extending upward to the city of Oakland.

The Federal Aviation Administration alert went out at 8:45 AM local time on Sunday. Many flights were back on schedule by midday.

Flights at Newark Airport, though, were delayed an mean of 82 minutes due to staffing shortages, and the FAA indicated Dallas Fort-Worth, the second-busiest airfield in the US, could encounter problems from reduced staff in the afternoon.

The FAA warned travelers in the state to check with airlines about updated flight schedules.

The issue precedes Game 3 of the World Series, which is scheduled in Los Angeles on Monday night, and about one month before the Thanksgiving break, among the peak periods to fly in the US.

Pressure on American aviation contributed to ending a federal closure in 2019. Back then, the halt had entered its fifth week and affected flight services, including aviator instruction.

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

That same day, Donald Trump, who at the time was in his initial presidency as president, consented to approve a short-term spending bill, bringing an end to the government shutdown after 35 days.