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American flight controllers are more and more seeking second jobs and calling in sick, as they continue to work unpaid amid the government shutdown, the transportation secretary has announced.

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

After the government shut down on October 1st, flight controllers, who are considered essential workers, were instructed to keep doing their duties without pay.

But a number have been absent, causing terminals to halt or reduce their plane traffic, which has exacerbated delays due to weather and other issues.

Over three thousand American flights were delayed on the weekend, and the secretary stated he expects the circumstances to deteriorate further.

"I am seeing the pressure," Duffy remarked in an interview on Sunday Morning Futures, noting that he had spoken to several controllers to listen to their concerns directly.

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

Duffy further mentioned that on the previous day 22 alerts at airfields said flights would be held up due to a shortage of workers - one of the highest since the closure began.

The American federal closure reached its 26th day on Sunday, rendering it the second-longest shutdown in history.

He has repeatedly warned that aviation regulators would reduce the number of planes in the air if there is a deficit of safety personnel.

In his conversation, he declined to respond directly when questioned if it was secure to fly in the US, and instead made a personal plea to controllers.

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

On that day, some planes were stopped at LAX due to employee deficits, causing disruption at the fifth most active terminal in the nation and one of the busiest in the world, as well as additional travel stretching north to the metropolis of Oakland.

The Federal Aviation Administration alert was issued at 8:45 AM local time on Sunday. Many flights were back on schedule by midday.

Flights at Newark Liberty International Airport, however, were postponed an mean of 82 minutes due to staffing shortages, and the FAA said Dallas Fort-Worth, the second most active airport in the US, could experience difficulties from low staffing later in the day.

The FAA warned passengers in the state to consult carriers about updated flight schedules.

The situation precedes Game 3 of the championship, which is due to be played in LA on Monday evening, and approximately four weeks prior to the Thanksgiving holiday, one of the busiest times to fly in the United States.

Pressure on American aviation contributed to ending a government shutdown in 2019. Back then, the shutdown had entered its fifth week and disrupted airline operations, including aviator instruction.

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

On that date, the former president, who at the period was in his first term as president, consented to approve a short-term spending bill, effectively ending the federal closure after 35 days.