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American flight controllers are increasingly looking for additional employment and calling in sick, as they remain on duty without pay amid the federal closure, the transportation secretary has stated.

"The controllers are wearing thin," Sean Duffy told a news outlet on the weekend, as some flights were halted on the Californian coast due to staffing shortages.

After the government shut down on 1 October, flight controllers, who are deemed critical staff, were told to continue performing their jobs without pay.

But a number have been missing, causing airports to halt or reduce their flight operations, which has added to setbacks caused by weather and additional factors.

More than three thousand American flights were postponed on Sunday, and the secretary said he expects the situation to deteriorate further.

"I observe the stress," Duffy said in an interview on a weekend program, noting that he had spoken to several controllers to hear their concerns directly.

"They're taking side jobs, they're out there searching, 'Should I drive Uber, am I able to find another source of earnings to cover expenses?'" he continued.

Duffy added that on Saturday twenty-two notifications at airfields said flights would be delayed due to a shortage of workers - among the peak after the shutdown began.

The US government shutdown entered its 26th day on Sunday, making it the second-longest shutdown in history.

Duffy has consistently cautioned that flight authorities would slow down the number of planes in the air if there is a deficit of security staff.

In his interview, he would not answer straightforwardly when questioned if it was safe to travel by air in the US, and instead made a personal plea to controllers.

"I need my staff concentrating on the airspace, not on the monetary matters at their households," the official said.

On Sunday, some planes were stopped at Los Angeles International Airport due to staffing shortages, causing disruption at the fifth-busiest airport in the nation and among the most crowded in the world, as well as other flights stretching north to the city of Oakland, California.

The FAA alert went out at 08:45 local time on Sunday. Many flights were operating normally before noon.

Travel at Newark Liberty International Airport, though, were postponed an mean of 82 minutes due to staffing shortages, and the authority indicated Dallas Fort-Worth, the second most active airfield in the US, could encounter problems from reduced staff in the afternoon.

The agency warned passengers in the state to check with airlines about updated flight schedules.

The issue comes ahead of Game 3 of the World Series, which is scheduled in Los Angeles on Monday evening, and about one month before the Thanksgiving break, one of the busiest periods to travel by air in the United States.

Pressure on US air travel contributed to ending a government shutdown in two thousand nineteen. Back then, the shutdown had entered its fifth week and affected airline operations, including pilot training.

It prompted a number of flight controllers to stay home on the identical date on January 25, 2019, temporarily stopping movement at New York's LaGuardia airport.

On that date, the former president, who at the time was in his first term as leader, agreed to sign a temporary funding measure, bringing an end to the government shutdown after thirty-five days.