The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has issued a halt on flights bound for Los Angeles, California, citing a shortage of air traffic controllers. This situation arises amidst the continued government shutdown, as reported by multiple sources.

This “temporary ground stop” was announced by the FAA following a statement from Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy. In a conversation with Fox News, Duffy highlighted an increase in the number of air traffic controllers calling in sick. This trend is attributed to growing financial concerns during the protracted shutdown, as noted by ABC News.

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The suspension of flights to Los Angeles led to aircraft being held at their departing airports starting at 11:42 a.m. Eastern time. The FAA anticipated that this interruption would conclude around 1:30 p.m., according to the reports.

Due to flights to Los Angeles being halted, airplanes “were held at their originating airports starting at 11:42 a.m. Eastern time,” with the FAA predicting that the halt would end around 1:30 p.m., according to the outlet.

Per the outlet:

During an appearance on the Fox News program “Sunday Morning Features,” Duffy said more controllers were calling in sick as money worries compound the stress of an already challenging job.

“Just yesterday, …. we had 22 staffing triggers. That’s one of the highest that we have seen in the system since the shutdown began. And that’s a sign that the controllers are wearing thin,” he said.

The FAA said planes headed for Los Angeles were held at their originating airports starting at 11:42 a.m. Eastern time, causing delays averaging an hour and 40 minutes. The agency said it expected to lift the ground stop at 1:30 p.m. Eastern time but might continue to restrict traffic into LAX.

The FAA’s announcement came after flights to locations such as Phoenix, Houston, and San Diego were also seeing delays on Friday due to staffing shortages, according to Politico.