The prolonged government shutdown in the United States continues to disrupt air traffic for a second day in a row, with more than 1,400 flights canceled in a single day on Saturday (November 8).

Thousands of flights have been delayed, and authorities say the situation could worsen in the coming days, according to a report by the British media outlet BBC on Sunday (November 9).

The media outlet says that more than 1,400 domestic and international flights were canceled on Saturday as the government shutdown in the United States entered its second day. Flight tracking site FlightAware said that about 6,000 more flights were delayed on Saturday, compared to more than 7,000 on Friday.

Earlier this week, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said it would reduce flight operations at the country's 40 busiest airports by up to 10 percent due to fatigue among air traffic controllers working without pay during the shutdown.

The impasse, which began on October 1, continues as Republicans and Democrats battle over funding in Congress. Saturday marked the 39th day of the longest impasse in US history.

Meanwhile, senators are busy negotiating over the weekend to find a compromise to end the shutdown and reopen the government, which is now affecting the lives of ordinary Americans as food aid and air travel are disrupted.

In a statement on Saturday, American Airlines called on leaders in Washington to “reach an immediate solution to end the impasse.”

The BBC says that Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey has seen the longest wait times during the shutdown. As of Saturday afternoon local time, flights were arriving there on average more than four hours late and departing flights were also delayed by about an hour and a half.

In addition, the most flight cancellations on Saturday were at Charlotte/Douglas International, Newark Liberty International and Chicago O'Hare International Airport.

The FAA said that as of Saturday afternoon, flights departing from John F. Kennedy International, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International and La Guardia airports were delayed by about three hours, two and a half hours and one hour, respectively.

However, not only commercial flights, but also private jets have been restricted, Transport Minister Duffy said. "The number of private jets at busy airports has been reduced. They have been asked to use smaller airports to make it easier to control commercial flights," he wrote in the Express Tribune on Saturday.

The FAA said the situation could worsen in the coming days. The agency is gradually reducing flights. As part of this, it plans to cancel 4 percent of flights on Friday, 6 percent on November 11, 8 percent on November 13 and 10 percent by November 14.

The FAA says the cuts are necessary to maintain safety, as unpaid work is leading to increased fatigue and absenteeism among air traffic controllers. Many are taking sick leave or working overtime to make ends meet.

In addition, most of the 64,000 employees of the Transportation Security Agency (TSA) are not receiving pay, which is also affecting airport security. Earlier in 2018, during the Trump administration's shutdown, about 10 percent of TSA employees stayed home without pay.