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US air traffic controllers are increasingly looking for additional employment and reporting ill, as they continue to work unpaid amid the federal closure, the transportation secretary has announced.

"The controllers are wearing thin," the official informed a news outlet on Sunday, as some flights were halted on the Californian coast due to personnel deficits.

Following the federal closure on 1 October, flight controllers, who are considered essential workers, were told to keep doing their jobs without pay.

But some have been missing, causing terminals to stop or slow their plane traffic, which has exacerbated delays caused by climate and other issues.

Over 3,000 US flights were delayed on Sunday, and Duffy said he anticipates the circumstances to deteriorate further.

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

"They are pursuing second jobs, they're out there looking, 'Should I drive Uber, am I able to secure another source of earnings to cover expenses?'" he added.

The secretary further mentioned that on Saturday 22 alerts at airports said travel would be delayed due to a lack of workers - among the peak since the closure started.

The US government shutdown reached its 26th day on the weekend, rendering it the second most extended shutdown in the past.

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

In his conversation, he would not answer directly when questioned if it was secure to fly in the US, and instead made a personal plea to controllers.

"I need my staff concentrating on the airspace, not on the finances at home," the official said.

On that day, some planes were stopped at LAX due to staffing shortages, causing disruption at the fifth-busiest terminal in the country and one of the busiest in the world, as well as other flights stretching north to the city of Oakland.

The FAA alert was issued at 8:45 AM local time on the weekend. Many flights were operating normally by midday.

Travel at Newark Liberty International Airport, however, were delayed an average of 82 minutes due to personnel issues, and the FAA said DFW, the second-busiest airport in the country, could experience problems from low staffing later in the day.

The FAA advised passengers in the state to check with airlines about revised departure times.

The situation comes ahead of Game 3 of the championship, which is scheduled in LA on Monday night, and approximately four weeks prior to the Thanksgiving break, one of the busiest periods to fly in the United States.

Pressure on US air travel helped end a federal closure in two thousand nineteen. Back then, the halt had entered its fifth week and disrupted flight services, including aviator instruction.

It prompted several 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 time was in his initial presidency as president, agreed to sign a short-term spending bill, effectively ending the federal closure after 35 days.