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US air traffic controllers are more and more seeking additional employment and reporting ill, as they continue to work without pay amid the federal closure, the transportation secretary has stated.

"The controllers are becoming strained," the official told a news outlet on Sunday, as some flights were halted on the Californian coast due to staffing shortages.

Following the government shut down on 1 October, air traffic controllers, who are considered critical staff, were instructed to continue performing their duties without pay.

But some have been absent, causing airports to halt or reduce their flight operations, which has exacerbated setbacks caused by climate and additional factors.

More than three thousand US flights were delayed on the weekend, and the secretary stated he expects the circumstances to grow worse.

"I am seeing the pressure," he remarked in an discussion on a weekend program, noting that he had spoken to several controllers to listen to their concerns firsthand.

"They're taking second jobs, they're out there looking, 'Should I work for Uber, am I able to secure an alternative of earnings to make ends meet?'" he continued.

Duffy further mentioned that on the previous day 22 alerts at airports indicated flights would be held up due to a shortage of employees - among the peak after the shutdown started.

The American federal closure entered its 26th day on Sunday, making it the second most extended halt in history.

Duffy has repeatedly warned that flight authorities would reduce the quantity of aircraft in the sky if there is a deficit of security staff.

In his conversation, he would not answer directly when questioned if it was safe to travel by air in the US, and instead issued a personal plea to the professionals.

"I need my staff concentrating on the flight paths, not on the finances at their households," the official stated.

On that day, some planes were grounded at LAX due to employee deficits, leading to disruption at the fifth-busiest airport in the nation and among the most crowded in the world, as well as additional travel stretching north to the city of Oakland.

The FAA alert went out at 8:45 AM local time on the weekend. Many flights were back on schedule before noon.

Travel at Newark Airport, however, were postponed an mean of over an hour due to personnel issues, and the authority indicated DFW, the second-busiest airport in the US, could encounter problems from low staffing later in the day.

The agency warned passengers in the state to check with carriers about revised flight schedules.

The issue comes ahead of the third match of the championship, which is scheduled in LA on Monday evening, and about one month before the Thanksgiving break, among the peak times to fly in the US.

Strain on US air travel helped end a government shutdown in 2019. Back then, the shutdown had reached its fifth week and affected flight services, including aviator instruction.

It led a number of air traffic controllers to remain absent on the same day 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 initial presidency as president, agreed to sign a short-term spending bill, bringing an end to the federal closure after 35 days.