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American flight controllers are increasingly seeking second jobs and calling in sick, as they remain on duty unpaid during the federal closure, the transport chief has stated.

"These professionals are wearing thin," Sean Duffy informed a news outlet on the weekend, as certain aircraft were halted on the California shoreline due to staffing shortages.

After the government shut down on 1 October, air traffic controllers, who are deemed critical staff, were told to keep doing their duties without pay.

But a number have been absent, causing terminals to halt or reduce their flight operations, which has added to delays caused by weather and other issues.

Over 3,000 American flights were postponed on the weekend, and Duffy stated he expects the circumstances to deteriorate further.

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

"They're taking second jobs, they're out there searching, 'Can I work for Uber, can I find another source of earnings to make ends meet?'" he continued.

The secretary added that on Saturday 22 alerts at airfields said travel would be held up due to a shortage of workers - one of the highest since the shutdown started.

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

He has repeatedly warned that aviation regulators would slow down the number of planes in the air if there is a shortage of safety personnel.

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

"I require my controllers focused on the airspace, not on the finances at their households," Duffy stated.

On Sunday, some planes were grounded at LAX due to staffing shortages, causing disruption at the fifth-busiest airport in the country and among the most crowded in the globe, as well as other flights extending upward to the metropolis of Oakland, California.

The FAA alert was issued at 08:45 in the morning on the weekend. Numerous trips were back on schedule by midday.

Flights at Newark Liberty International Airport, though, were postponed an mean of over an hour due to staffing shortages, and the authority indicated Dallas Fort-Worth, the second most active airfield in the country, could encounter difficulties from low staffing later in the day.

The agency warned passengers in California to consult carriers about revised departure times.

The situation precedes the third match of the World Series, which is due to be played in LA on Monday night, and about one month prior to the Thanksgiving break, one of the busiest times to fly in the United States.

Pressure on American aviation helped end a government shutdown in 2019. Back then, the halt had entered its fifth week and affected airline operations, including pilot training.

It led several flight controllers to remain absent on the same day on 25 January 2019, temporarily stopping travel at New York's LaGuardia airport.

That same day, the former president, who at the period was in his first term as leader, agreed to sign a short-term spending bill, effectively ending the federal closure after 35 days.