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

"The controllers are becoming strained," the official informed Fox News on the weekend, as some flights were grounded on the Californian coast due to personnel deficits.

After the government shut down on 1 October, air traffic controllers, who are deemed essential workers, were instructed to continue performing their duties uncompensated.

But a number have been absent, leading terminals to stop or slow their plane traffic, which has exacerbated setbacks caused by climate and other issues.

More than three thousand US flights were postponed on the weekend, and the secretary stated he expects the circumstances to grow worse.

"I am seeing the pressure," he said in an interview on Sunday Morning Futures, noting that he had met with several controllers to hear their concerns firsthand.

"They are pursuing side jobs, they're out there searching, 'Can I drive Uber, am I able to find another source of income to cover expenses?'" he continued.

The secretary further mentioned that on Saturday 22 alerts at airports indicated flights would be held up due to a shortage of employees - among the peak since the shutdown 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 repeatedly warned that flight authorities would slow down the quantity of aircraft in the air if there is a deficit of safety personnel.

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

"I require my staff concentrating on the airspace, not on the finances at home," the official said.

On that day, some planes were stopped at LAX due to employee deficits, causing interruption at the fifth most active airport in the country and among the most crowded in the world, as well as other flights stretching upward to the city of Oakland.

The FAA notice was issued at 8:45 AM in the morning on Sunday. Many flights were back on schedule by midday.

Flights at Newark Liberty International Airport, though, were delayed an average of over an hour due to staffing shortages, and the FAA indicated DFW, the second-busiest airport in the country, could encounter problems from reduced staff in the afternoon.

The FAA warned passengers in the state to consult carriers about updated departure times.

The situation precedes Game 3 of the championship, which is due to be played in LA on Monday night, and about one month before the Thanksgiving break, among the peak times to travel by air in the US.

Pressure on US air travel contributed to ending a federal closure in 2019. Back then, the shutdown had reached its fifth week and disrupted flight services, including pilot training.

It led several air traffic controllers to remain absent on the same day on 25 January 2019, briefly halting movement at LaGuardia Airport in New York.

On that date, Donald Trump, who at the time was in his initial presidency as president, agreed to sign a temporary funding measure, bringing an end to the federal closure after thirty-five days.