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US air traffic controllers are increasingly looking for additional employment and calling in sick, as they remain on duty without pay during the government shutdown, the transportation secretary has announced.

"These professionals are wearing thin," Sean Duffy informed a news outlet on the weekend, as certain aircraft were halted on the California shoreline due to personnel deficits.

After the government shut down on October 1st, flight controllers, who are deemed critical staff, were told to keep doing their duties without pay.

But some have been absent, causing airports to halt or reduce their flight operations, which has added to setbacks due to weather and additional factors.

More than 3,000 US flights were delayed on Sunday, and the secretary said he anticipates the situation to deteriorate further.

"I am seeing the pressure," Duffy remarked in an interview on Sunday Morning Futures, adding that he had spoken to multiple professionals to listen to their concerns firsthand.

"They are pursuing second jobs, they're out there looking, 'Should I work for Uber, can I secure an alternative of earnings to cover expenses?'" he added.

The secretary further mentioned that on the previous day twenty-two notifications at airports indicated flights would be delayed due to a lack of employees - among the peak since the shutdown started.

The US government shutdown reached its twenty-sixth day on Sunday, rendering it the second-longest halt in the past.

He has repeatedly warned that aviation regulators would slow down the number of planes in the sky if there is a shortage of security staff.

In his conversation, he declined to respond directly when questioned if it was secure to fly in the US, and instead issued a direct appeal to the professionals.

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

On Sunday, certain flights were grounded at Los Angeles International Airport due to employee deficits, causing interruption at the fifth-busiest airport in the country and one of the busiest in the world, as well as additional travel stretching north to the metropolis of Oakland, California.

The Federal Aviation Administration alert went out at 08:45 in the morning on the weekend. Many flights were operating normally by midday.

Flights at Newark Airport, though, were postponed an mean of 82 minutes due to staffing shortages, and the authority indicated DFW, the second most active airport in the US, could experience difficulties from low staffing in the afternoon.

The agency warned travelers in California to check with airlines about revised departure times.

The situation precedes the third match of the championship, which is scheduled in LA on Monday evening, and approximately four weeks before the Thanksgiving holiday, among the peak times to fly in the US.

Strain on US air travel helped end a federal closure in two thousand nineteen. Back then, the shutdown had reached its fifth week and affected flight services, including pilot training.

It prompted several air traffic 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 initial presidency as leader, consented to approve a temporary funding measure, bringing an end to the government shutdown after thirty-five days.