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American flight controllers are increasingly looking for additional employment and reporting ill, as they remain on duty without pay amid the government shutdown, the transport chief has stated.

"The controllers are becoming strained," Sean Duffy informed a news outlet on Sunday, as certain aircraft were halted on the California shoreline due to staffing shortages.

After the federal closure on 1 October, air traffic controllers, who are considered critical staff, were instructed to keep doing their duties uncompensated.

But a number have been absent, leading terminals to stop or slow their flight operations, which has added to setbacks caused by weather and other issues.

More than 3,000 American flights were delayed on Sunday, and the secretary said he anticipates the situation to grow worse.

"I am seeing the stress," Duffy said in an interview on a weekend program, noting that he had met with several controllers to hear their concerns firsthand.

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

Duffy added that on the previous day 22 alerts at airfields said flights would be delayed due to a lack of employees - among the peak after the shutdown began.

The US government shutdown entered its 26th day on Sunday, making it the second most extended halt in history.

Duffy has repeatedly warned that aviation regulators would reduce the number of aircraft in the air if there is a shortage of safety personnel.

In his interview, he declined to respond straightforwardly when asked if it was secure to travel by air in the United States, and instead issued a direct appeal to the professionals.

"I require my controllers concentrating on the flight paths, not on the monetary matters at home," Duffy stated.

On that day, some planes were stopped at Los Angeles International Airport due to employee deficits, leading to disruption at the fifth-busiest airport in the country and among the most crowded in the globe, as well as additional travel stretching north to the city of Oakland, California.

The FAA alert was issued at 08:45 in the morning 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 staffing shortages, and the FAA said DFW, the second most active airport in the US, could encounter problems from reduced staff in the afternoon.

The FAA advised travelers in California to check with airlines about updated flight schedules.

The issue precedes Game 3 of the World Series, which is scheduled in Los Angeles on Monday evening, and about one month prior to the Thanksgiving holiday, among the peak periods to travel by air in the US.

Strain on American aviation contributed to ending a federal closure in 2019. Back then, the halt had reached its fifth week and affected airline operations, including pilot training.

It led a number of flight controllers to stay home on the same day on 25 January 2019, temporarily stopping travel at LaGuardia Airport in New York.

That same day, the former president, who at the period was in his first term as president, consented to approve a short-term spending bill, bringing an end to the federal closure after thirty-five days.