EL PASO, Texas (KFOX14/CBS4) — The Federal Aviation Administration has lifted the airspace closure in El Paso, and all flights will resume as normal after the FAA grounded all flights to and from El Paso on Tuesday night.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy confirmed the airspace closure was due to a "cartel drone" breach.
Duffy said the FAA and the Department of War acted swiftly to address the incident.
The Pentagon released the following statement:
Mexican cartel drones breached US airspace. The Department of War took action to disable the drones. The FAA and DOW have determined there is no threat to commercial travel.
Congressman Gabe Vasquez, the Santa Teresa airspace remains closed for the next ten days, but it's not impacting the Santa Teresa airport.
According to CNN, a Pentagon plan to use a high-energy, counter-drone laser without having coordinated with the Federal Aviation Administration about potential risks to civilian flights prompted Wednesday’s unprecedented airspace shutdown over El Paso, multiple sources told CNN.
CNN also previously reported that Mexican cartel drones breached US airspace, which triggered a temporary airspace closure over El Paso.
"The Department of War took action to disable the drones," the official told CNN. "The FAA and DOW have determined there is no threat to commercial travel."
According to CBS News, earlier this week, the anti-drone technology was launched near the southern border to shoot down what appeared to be foreign drones. According to CBS News the flying material turned out to be a party balloon; one balloon was shot down.
On Tuesday, at 11:30 p.m., the FAA issued a temporary flight restriction halting all flights to and from El Paso, including commercial, cargo, and general aviation-- for 10 days, until 11:30 p.m. Feb. 20.
However, the restriction was lifted at around 7 a.m. Wednesday morning, which lasted approximately seven hours.
Below is the statement the El Paso International Airport released after the restriction was announced:
The FAA, on short notice, issued a temporary flight restriction halting all flights to and from El Paso and our neighboring community, Santa Teresa, NM. The restriction prohibits all aircraft operations (including commercial, cargo and general aviation) and is effective from February 10 at 11:30 PM (MST) to February 20 at 11:30PM (MST). Airport staff has reached out to the FAA, and we are pending additional guidance. In the meanwhile, commercial airlines operating out of El Paso are being informed of the restriction, which appears to be security related. Travelers are encouraged to contact their airlines to get the latest information on their flight status.
On Wednesday morning, El Paso city leaders gave a press conference regarding the incident.
El Paso leaders press conference following closure of El Paso airspace
Meanwhile, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum addressed the flight restriction during her morning press conference.
“There is no information on the use of drones on the border. If there is any information, then the FAA or any other US agency can ask the government of Mexico,” said Sheinbaum.
KFOX14 Team Coverage on{ }FAA lifts El Paso airspace closure after cartel drone breach, federal officials say (Credit: KFOX14)
Congresswoman Veronica Escobar provided the following statement:
The highly consequential decision by the FAA to shut down the El Paso Airport for 10 days is unprecedented and resulted in significant concern in the community. From what my office and I have been able to gather overnight and early this morning, there is no immediate threat to the community or surrounding areas. There was no advance notice provided to my office, the City of El Paso, or anyone involved in airport operations. We have urged the FAA to immediately lift the Temporary Flight Restrictions placed on the El Paso area. I will continue to make information public as I learn it.
Following the announcement of the flight restrictions, Republican Congressman Tony Gonzales released a statement reminding people of a similar closure that happened in November 2025 in Hudspeth County, but did not mention any more details.
Gonzales's initial statement:
The airspace in my district around the El Paso region is closed at the moment. I am actively in discussions with federal authorities who assure me there is no security threat to the area. In November of 2025, a similar airspace closure occurred in the neighboring Hudspeth County, also in my district. After collaboration with federal partners, this TFR was lifted expeditiously. I will continue to work with the administration to ensure the TFR in the El Paso community is addressed in a safe and prompt manner.
El Paso Mayor Renard Johnson gave the following statement:
I want to provide an update to the people of El Paso regarding the FAA’s decision to lift the temporary restricted airspace over our city. But I want to be very clear: this never should have happened.
You cannot restrict airspace over a major city without coordinating with the city, the airport, hospitals, and community leadership. That failure to communicate is unacceptable. This decision had real consequences. Medical evacuation flights were forced to divert to Las Cruces. All aviation operations were grounded, including emergency flights and even drones. That is not a minor disruption. That is a public safety issue.
El Paso is not just a dot on a map. We are a major border city with hospitals, military operations, emergency services, and critical infrastructure that depend on coordinated and reliable airspace operations. Decisions made without notice or coordination put lives at risk and create unnecessary danger and confusion.
From the moment we learned about this, my office worked with Congresswoman Veronica Escobar, Major General Taylor at Fort Bliss, and our local, state, and federal partners to get answers and push for this to be corrected. I appreciate those efforts, but the process itself failed our community.
We expect better communication, better coordination, and more respect for the people of El Paso. We will be following up with the FAA to make sure this does not happen again.
Public safety comes first. El Paso deserves transparency, accountability, and a real seat at the table when decisions like this are made.
El Paso County Judge Ricardo Samaniego provided the following statement:
As the head of emergency management for El Paso County pursuant to Chapter 418, Section 418.1015 of the Texas Government Code, I was not informed of today’s FAA decision to close the airspace at El Paso International Airport.
The absence of prior communication contributed to significant concern and confusion within the community, as such actions have direct implications for public awareness, safety coordination, and local emergency management response efforts.
Transparency is essential during these types of situations that impact public safety and regional operations. As soon as more information becomes available, timely updates will be provided to keep everyone informed.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott credited the United States government for "eliminating the threat," allowing the FAA to lift the airspace closure in El Paso.
Governor Greg Abbott credited the United States government for "eliminating the threat," allowing the FAA to lift the airspace closure in El Paso.
Officials with the University Medical Center said the closure of the El Paso airspace did not impact transfers via air medical services. Full statement below:
As with any situation or emergency, UMC was prepared to continue providing patient care for our community during the Federal Aviation Administration's temporary grounding of all flights in El Paso, which included air medical services. After midnight, when UMC became aware of the temporary closure of airspace in El Paso through local news reports, conversation amongst several El Paso hospital CEOs began to determine what the impact would be and how we could assist each other through what was initially reported to last 10 days. During the temporary grounding, UMC remained fully operational and did not experience issues with transfers via air medical services, but was prepared nonetheless to respond by other means, if it became necessary. Capacity, staffing, critical supply levels, and contingency protocols remained at the forefront to ensure patient safety while air transport was unavailable. Coordination was maintained with our healthcare partners, as well as Emergency Medical Services. As the region's only Level 1 Trauma Center, we at UMC pride ourselves in the safety protocols, routine drills and continuity of care plans that are in place to ensure we have an adequate supply of medical equipment and resources to continue providing the uninterrupted patient care our region depends on.
Audio from the air traffic controller was obtained, where it can be heard that a pilot was caught off guard when the airspace was shut down.
Audio from the air traffic controller was obtained, where it can be heard that a pilot was caught off-guard when the airspace was shut down. (credit: LiveATC.net){ }
According to the El Paso Airport website, there were six cancelled flights and five delayed flights on Wednesday morning at the El Paso International Airport.
The City of Las Cruces said it received about nine diverted flights from El Paso, mostly corporate aviation flights, which later returned to El Paso when the airspace closure was lifted.
Sign up to receive the top interesting stories from in and around our community once daily in your inbox.