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American flight controllers are increasingly seeking second jobs and reporting ill, as they continue to work without pay during the federal closure, the transport chief has announced.

"These professionals are wearing thin," the official informed Fox News on the weekend, as some flights were grounded on the Californian coast due to personnel deficits.

Following the federal closure on 1 October, air traffic controllers, who are considered essential workers, were instructed to keep doing their jobs without pay.

But some have been absent, leading airports 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 Sunday, and Duffy stated he anticipates the circumstances to deteriorate further.

"I observe the stress," he said in an discussion on Sunday Morning Futures, adding that he had spoken to multiple professionals to hear their concerns firsthand.

"They are pursuing second jobs, they're out there looking, 'Can I work for Uber, can I secure another source of income to cover expenses?'" he continued.

Duffy further mentioned that on the previous day twenty-two notifications at airfields said travel would be delayed due to a lack of workers - among the peak after the shutdown started.

The American federal closure reached its 26th day on the weekend, rendering it the second most extended shutdown in the past.

Duffy has repeatedly warned that aviation regulators would reduce the quantity of planes in the sky if there is a shortage of security staff.

In his interview, he would not answer directly when questioned if it was secure to fly in the US, and instead issued a direct appeal to controllers.

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

On Sunday, certain flights were stopped at Los Angeles International Airport due to staffing shortages, leading to interruption at the fifth-busiest 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 08:45 in the morning on Sunday. Numerous trips were back on schedule by midday.

Flights at Newark Airport, however, were delayed an average of over an hour due to personnel issues, and the FAA indicated Dallas Fort-Worth, the second-busiest airport in the US, could encounter problems from low staffing in the afternoon.

The agency warned travelers in California to check with airlines about revised flight schedules.

The situation precedes the third match of the championship, which is scheduled in Los Angeles on Monday night, and about one month before the Thanksgiving break, among the peak times to travel by air in the United States.

Pressure on American aviation helped end a federal closure in 2019. Back then, the shutdown had entered its fifth week and disrupted flight services, including aviator instruction.

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

That same day, Donald Trump, who at the period was in his first term as president, agreed to sign a short-term spending bill, bringing an end to the federal closure after 35 days.