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    "original_url": "https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2026\/02\/11\/us\/el-paso-airspace-shutdown-what-to-know.html?campaign_id=9&emc=edit_nn_20260212&instance_id=170981&nl=the-morning&regi_id=122976029&segment_id=215164&user_id=b25c5730c89e0c73f75709d8f1254337",
    "parsed_content": "Trump AdministrationliveUpdatesFeb. 12, 2026, 11:00 a.m. ET12m agoEpstein\u00a0FalloutWhistle-Blower ReportTrump\u2019s Online DrugstorePolicy LawsuitsTariff TrackerAdvertisementSKIP ADVERTISEMENTSupported bySKIP ADVERTISEMENTWhat We Know About the El Paso Airspace ShutdownThe Trump administration blamed the disruptive halt on a cartel drone incursion, but others have disputed that explanation.Listen to this article \u00b7 5:52 min Learn moreShare full articleThe shutdown at the airport in El Paso was lifted in less than eight hours, but not before disrupting travelers and businesses.Credit...Paul Ratje for The New York TimesBy Daniel VictorKaroun DemirjianLuke BroadwaterEdgar Sandoval and Laura ChungPublished Feb. 11, 2026Updated Feb. 12, 2026, 12:50 a.m. ETLeer en espa\u00f1olThe Federal Aviation Administration briefly shut down the airspace over El Paso, Texas, late on Tuesday for 10 days, a sudden decision that surprised local officials, disrupted travelers and alarmed many others.The restrictions were lifted less than eight hours later but much remains unclear about why officials abruptly shut down a major regional airport for more than a week. Trump administration officials have said Mexican cartel drones had breached U.S. airspace, but others have disputed that explanation.Here\u2019s what we know:The order came without warning.At 11:30 p.m. local time, the F.A.A. halted all flights to and from El Paso International Airport for 10 days for \u201cspecial security reasons.\u201d The restriction encompassed a 10-mile area around El Paso and included the neighboring community of Santa Teresa, N.M., but did not apply to planes flying above 18,000 feet, the F.A.A. notices said.The notices did not detail the security reasons that prompted the restriction. But in one notice, the F.A.A. said the federal government \u201cmay use deadly force\u201d if an aircraft violating the airspace was determined to pose \u201can imminent security threat.\u201dThe shutdown caught travelers, local officials, and airlines off guard. El Paso airport said in a statement that the restriction had been issued \u201con short notice.\u201dBy 7 a.m. on Wednesday, less than eight hours after it issued the notices, the F.A.A. abruptly reversed course, lifting the restrictions at the direction of the White House. \u201cThere is no threat to commercial aviation,\u201d the agency said on social media.The shutdown caused chaos in El Paso.Renard Johnson, the mayor of El Paso, said at a news conference Wednesday morning that many local officials remained unclear about why the F.A.A. had shut down the airport, and that the \u201cfailure to communicate is unacceptable.\u201d He said it had resulted in a series of chaotic events around El Paso, including medical evacuation flights that were forced to divert to Las Cruces, N.M., about 45 miles to the northwest.\u201cI want to be very, very clear that this should\u2019ve never happened. You cannot restrict air space over a major city without coordinating with the city, the airport, the hospitals, the community leadership,\u201d Mayor Johnson said.Senators Ted Cruz and John Cornyn, Republicans of Texas, both said they wanted a classified briefing on the incident from the F.A.A. and the Defense Department.The F.A.A. generally goes to great lengths to avoid closing airports because unplanned closures, even for a few hours, can severely disrupt air travel.The Trump administration blamed a drug cartel drone.Top officials from the Trump administration were quick to claim that the airspace over El Paso was closed after a sudden incursion of Mexican drug cartel drones that required a military response.Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said on social media that the F.A.A., an agency within the Transportation Department, and the Defense Department \u201cacted swiftly to address a cartel drone incursion,\u201d and that the threat had been eliminated.Federal agencies have largely stayed mum on the closure. Bryan Bedford, the F.A.A. administrator, declined to answer questions from reporters after a closed-door briefing with lawmakers in Washington on Wednesday. Earlier on Wednesday, a Pentagon spokesman repeated the military\u2019s assertion that it had responded to a drone incursion.Many officials have pushed back on the drone explanation given by Trump administration officials, asking why an incursion prompted such a sweeping F.A.A. response. \u201cThere have been drone incursions from Mexico going back to as long as drones existed,\u201d Representative Veronica Escobar, an El Paso Democrat, said at a news conference.Others say there\u2019s more to the story.Multiple people briefed on the situation said the abrupt airspace closure was prompted by Customs and Border Protection officials deploying an anti-drone laser in the area without giving aviation officials enough time to assess the risks to commercial planes.Further, according to multiple people familiar with the situation, the F.A.A.\u2019s move came after immigration officials earlier this week used an anti-drone laser shared with them by the Defense Department without coordination with the aviation agency. The C.B.P. officials thought they were firing on a cartel drone, the people said, but it was a party balloon.The Defense Department and the Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The F.A.A. declined to comment.According to the people briefed on the matter, at the time the F.A.A. closed the airspace, it had not yet completed an assessment of possible risks posed by the new anti-drone technology to other aircraft. Two of the people added that F.A.A. officials had warned the Pentagon that if they were not given enough time and information for their review, they would have no choice but to shut down the airspace near the anti-drone system.According to four people briefed on the situation, Pentagon and F.A.A. officials were set to meet on Feb. 20 to discuss the safety implications of deploying the military\u2019s new anti-drone technology, which was being tested.The U.S. military has been developing high-energy laser weapons to intercept and destroy drones. The Trump administration has said Mexican cartels use drones to track Border Patrol agents and smuggle drugs into the United States.Reyes Mata III, Eric Schmitt, Kate Kelly and Hamed Aleaziz contributed reporting.Daniel Victor is a senior editor at The Times on the Live team, which covers breaking and developing news.Karoun Demirjian is a breaking news reporter for The Times.Luke Broadwater covers the White House for The Times.Edgar Sandoval covers Texas for The Times, with a focus on the Latino community and the border with Mexico. He is based in San Antonio.Laura Chung is a Sydney-based reporter and researcher for The Times, covering Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific.See more on: U.S. Politics, U.S. Department of Defense, Federal Aviation Administration (F.A.A.), Transportation Department, Donald TrumpRead 186 commentsShare full articleRelated ContentAdvertisementSKIP ADVERTISEMENT"
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