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US air traffic controllers are more and more looking for second jobs and reporting ill, as they continue to work unpaid amid the federal closure, the transport chief has stated.

"These professionals are becoming strained," Sean Duffy told a news outlet on the weekend, as some flights were grounded on the Californian coast due to personnel deficits.

After the government shut down on October 1st, air traffic controllers, who are considered critical staff, were instructed to keep doing their jobs without pay.

But a number have been missing, leading airports to stop or slow their flight operations, which has exacerbated delays due to climate and other issues.

Over 3,000 US flights were postponed on Sunday, and the secretary stated he expects the situation to deteriorate further.

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

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

Duffy added that on the previous day twenty-two notifications at airports indicated travel would be delayed due to a shortage of employees - among the peak after the closure started.

The American federal closure reached its twenty-sixth day on Sunday, rendering it the second-longest shutdown in the past.

He has consistently cautioned that aviation regulators would reduce the quantity of aircraft in the air if there is a deficit of safety personnel.

In his interview, he declined to respond straightforwardly when questioned if it was secure to travel by air in the US, and instead made a direct appeal to controllers.

"I require my controllers focused on the flight paths, not on the finances at home," Duffy said.

On Sunday, certain flights were grounded at LAX due to employee deficits, causing disruption at the fifth-busiest airport in the country and one of the busiest in the world, as well as other flights stretching upward to the city of Oakland.

The FAA notice was issued at 8:45 AM local time on the weekend. Many flights were back on schedule before noon.

Travel at Newark Liberty International Airport, though, were delayed an mean of 82 minutes due to personnel issues, and the FAA said DFW, the second-busiest airport in the US, could encounter difficulties from low staffing later in the day.

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

The situation precedes the third match of the World Series, which is scheduled in Los Angeles on Monday evening, and approximately four weeks before the Thanksgiving holiday, one of the busiest times to travel by air in the US.

Strain on American aviation contributed to ending a federal closure in two thousand nineteen. At the time, the halt had reached its fifth week and disrupted flight services, including pilot training.

It prompted several flight controllers to remain absent on the same day on January 25, 2019, temporarily stopping movement at LaGuardia Airport in New York.

That same day, Donald Trump, who at the time was in his initial presidency as president, agreed to sign a temporary funding measure, effectively ending the federal closure after 35 days.