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US air traffic controllers are increasingly looking for additional employment and calling in sick, as they continue to work without pay amid the federal closure, the transportation secretary has announced.

"These professionals are wearing thin," Sean Duffy told a news outlet on Sunday, as certain aircraft were grounded on the California shoreline due to personnel deficits.

After the federal closure on 1 October, air traffic controllers, who are considered critical staff, were told to continue performing their jobs without pay.

But a number have been absent, leading airports to stop or slow their plane traffic, which has exacerbated delays due to climate and additional factors.

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

"I observe the stress," Duffy said in an interview on a weekend program, noting that he had met with multiple professionals to hear their worries firsthand.

"They're taking side jobs, they're out there looking, 'Can I work for Uber, can I find another source of income to make ends meet?'" he added.

Duffy added that on the previous day twenty-two notifications at airfields indicated travel would be delayed due to a shortage of workers - one of the highest since the closure began.

The US government shutdown entered its twenty-sixth day on the weekend, making it the second most extended shutdown in the past.

Duffy has consistently cautioned that flight authorities would reduce the quantity of aircraft in the air if there is a shortage of safety personnel.

In his interview, he declined to respond straightforwardly when questioned if it was safe to fly in the United States, and instead issued a direct appeal to the professionals.

"I require my controllers concentrating on the flight paths, not on the finances at their households," the official said.

On Sunday, certain flights were stopped at Los Angeles International Airport due to employee deficits, causing interruption at the fifth most active airport in the nation and among the most crowded in the globe, as well as additional travel extending north to the city of Oakland.

The FAA alert was issued at 08:45 local time on the weekend. Many flights were back on schedule before noon.

Travel at Newark Airport, however, were delayed an mean of 82 minutes due to staffing shortages, and the authority indicated DFW, the second most active airfield in the country, could experience problems from low staffing later in the day.

The FAA warned travelers in the state to consult airlines about updated departure times.

The issue precedes the third match of the championship, which is scheduled in Los Angeles on Monday evening, and approximately four weeks prior to the Thanksgiving break, one of the busiest times to travel by air in the United States.

Pressure on US air travel contributed to ending a government shutdown in 2019. At the time, the halt had entered its fifth week and affected airline operations, including pilot training.

It led several air traffic controllers to remain absent on the identical date 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 initial presidency as president, consented to approve a temporary funding measure, effectively ending the federal closure after thirty-five days.