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American flight controllers are more and more looking for additional employment and calling in sick, as they remain on duty without pay during the federal closure, the transport chief has announced.

"The controllers are wearing thin," the official informed Fox News on Sunday, as certain aircraft were grounded on the Californian coast due to staffing shortages.

After the federal closure on 1 October, flight controllers, who are considered essential workers, were told to continue performing their duties uncompensated.

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

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

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

"They're taking side jobs, they're out there searching, 'Can I drive Uber, can I find an alternative of income to cover expenses?'" he added.

Duffy further mentioned that on the previous day 22 alerts at airports indicated travel would be held up due to a lack of workers - one of the highest since the shutdown started.

The American federal closure entered its 26th day on Sunday, rendering it the second most extended shutdown in history.

Duffy has consistently cautioned that flight authorities would slow down the number of planes in the sky if there is a deficit of safety personnel.

In his conversation, he declined to respond straightforwardly when questioned if it was safe to travel by air in the United States, and instead made a direct appeal to controllers.

"I require my controllers concentrating on the airspace, not on the finances at home," the official stated.

On Sunday, certain flights were stopped at LAX due to employee deficits, causing disruption at the fifth most active terminal in the nation and among the most crowded in the world, as well as additional travel extending upward to the city of Oakland.

The FAA alert went out at 08:45 in the morning on Sunday. Many flights were operating normally before noon.

Travel at Newark Airport, however, were postponed an average of over an hour due to staffing shortages, and the authority said Dallas Fort-Worth, the second-busiest airfield in the US, could encounter difficulties from reduced staff later in the day.

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

The issue comes ahead of the third match of the World Series, which is scheduled in Los Angeles on Monday night, and about one month before the Thanksgiving holiday, one of the busiest periods to fly in the United States.

Pressure on American aviation helped end a federal closure in 2019. Back then, the shutdown had reached its fifth week and affected airline operations, including aviator instruction.

It led several flight controllers to remain absent on the same day on 25 January 2019, briefly halting travel at LaGuardia Airport in New York.

On that date, Donald Trump, who at the period was in his first term as leader, consented to approve a temporary funding measure, effectively ending the government shutdown after thirty-five days.