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US air traffic controllers are increasingly looking for second jobs and reporting ill, as they remain on duty unpaid amid the government shutdown, the transport chief has stated.

"These professionals are wearing thin," the official told a news outlet on Sunday, as certain aircraft were halted on the California shoreline due to staffing shortages.

Following the federal closure on 1 October, flight controllers, who are considered critical staff, were told to keep doing their jobs without pay.

But a number have been missing, leading airports to halt or reduce their flight operations, which has exacerbated setbacks due to weather and other issues.

More than 3,000 US flights were postponed on Sunday, and the secretary stated he expects the circumstances to deteriorate further.

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

"They're taking second jobs, they're out there searching, 'Can I drive Uber, can I secure an alternative of earnings to cover expenses?'" he continued.

Duffy added that on Saturday twenty-two notifications at airports said travel would be delayed due to a shortage of employees - among the peak after the closure began.

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

Duffy has consistently cautioned that aviation regulators would reduce the number of aircraft in the air if there is a deficit of security staff.

In his interview, he would not answer straightforwardly when questioned if it was secure to travel by air in the US, and instead issued a direct appeal to the professionals.

"I need my staff concentrating 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 terminal in the country and one of the busiest in the world, as well as other flights extending north to the metropolis of Oakland.

The Federal Aviation Administration alert was issued at 8:45 AM local time on Sunday. Numerous trips were operating normally by midday.

Travel at Newark Airport, however, were postponed an average of over an hour due to personnel issues, and the authority indicated Dallas Fort-Worth, the second most active airfield in the US, could encounter difficulties from low staffing later in the day.

The agency warned travelers in the state to check with carriers about updated flight schedules.

The issue comes ahead of Game 3 of the championship, which is due to be played in LA on Monday night, and about one month before the Thanksgiving holiday, among the peak periods to fly in the United States.

Pressure on US air travel helped end a government shutdown in 2019. Back then, the halt had entered its fifth week and disrupted airline operations, including aviator instruction.

It prompted several flight controllers to remain absent on the identical date on January 25, 2019, briefly halting movement at LaGuardia Airport in New York.

On that date, Donald Trump, who at the period was in his first term as leader, agreed to sign a temporary funding measure, effectively ending the federal closure after thirty-five days.