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US air traffic controllers are increasingly looking for second jobs and calling in sick, as they remain on duty without pay amid the government shutdown, the transport chief has announced.

"The controllers are wearing thin," Sean Duffy informed a news outlet on the weekend, as certain aircraft were grounded on the Californian coast due to personnel deficits.

After the government shut down on October 1st, air traffic controllers, who are deemed critical staff, were instructed to keep doing their duties uncompensated.

But a number have been absent, leading airports to halt or reduce their plane traffic, which has exacerbated delays caused by weather and other issues.

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

"I am seeing the stress," Duffy said in an interview on Sunday Morning Futures, adding that he had met with multiple professionals to hear their concerns directly.

"They are pursuing side jobs, they're out there looking, 'Should I drive Uber, am I able to secure another source of earnings to make ends meet?'" he continued.

The secretary further mentioned that on Saturday 22 alerts at airfields said travel would be delayed due to a lack of workers - one of the highest after the shutdown started.

The American federal closure entered its twenty-sixth day on the weekend, rendering it the second most extended halt in history.

He has consistently cautioned that flight authorities would reduce the number of aircraft in the air if there is a shortage of security staff.

In his conversation, he would not answer straightforwardly when questioned if it was secure to travel by air in the United States, and instead made a direct appeal to the professionals.

"I need my controllers focused on the flight paths, not on the monetary matters at their households," Duffy stated.

On that day, some planes were stopped at LAX due to staffing shortages, leading to disruption at the fifth most active terminal in the nation and one of the busiest in the world, as well as other flights extending north to the city of Oakland.

The FAA notice went out at 08:45 in the morning on Sunday. Many flights were operating normally before noon.

Travel at Newark Airport, however, were delayed an mean of over an hour due to personnel issues, and the FAA indicated Dallas Fort-Worth, the second most active airfield in the country, could encounter problems from reduced staff in the afternoon.

The FAA advised passengers in the state to consult airlines about revised flight schedules.

The issue comes ahead of the third match of the World Series, which is due to be played in LA on Monday evening, and about one month prior to the Thanksgiving holiday, one of the busiest periods to fly in the US.

Strain on US air travel helped end a government shutdown in two thousand nineteen. Back then, the halt had reached its fifth week and disrupted airline operations, including aviator instruction.

It prompted a number of air traffic controllers to remain absent on the identical date on 25 January 2019, briefly halting movement at New York's LaGuardia airport.

On that date, Donald Trump, who at the time was in his initial presidency as leader, agreed to sign a temporary funding measure, effectively ending the federal closure after 35 days.