Airspace over El Paso, Texas and a large stretch of southern New Mexico was abruptly shut down overnight — triggering confusion, cancellations, and what local officials described as outright chaos. By Wednesday morning, the Federal Aviation Administration lifted the restriction, insisting there was “no threat to commercial aviation.” But the explanation only deepened the mystery.
The White House now says the temporary shutdown was triggered by Mexican cartel drones breaching U.S. airspace. According to Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, the Department of War moved quickly to disable the unmanned aircraft, neutralizing the threat.
“The FAA and DOW acted swiftly to address a cartel drone incursion,” Duffy posted on X. “The threat has been neutralized, and there is no danger to commercial travel in the region.”
GROUNDED: The Federal Aviation Administration grounded all flights to and from El Paso International Airport in Texas for the next 10 days.
The government has classified the area as “national defense airspace,” and the notification states that deadly force could be used against… pic.twitter.com/CJiO7ZCF8S
— Fox News (@FoxNews) February 11, 2026
Case closed? Not quite.
An aviation industry official told the Texas Tribune that the closure had nothing to do with cartel drones. Instead, the source claimed the issue stemmed from Defense Department drone operations launched near El Paso’s airport — flights allegedly conducted without proper coordination with the FAA.
“It has to do with the FAA’s inability to predict where unmanned aircraft systems might be flying,” the official said. “They have been operating outside the normal flight paths.”
That explanation paints a very different picture — one of bureaucratic breakdown rather than foreign threat.
Meanwhile, on the ground in El Paso, leaders were blindsided.
Mayor Renard Johnson did not mince words.
“This should have never happened,” Johnson said at a Wednesday press conference. “You cannot restrict airspace over a major city without coordinating with the city, the airport, the hospitals, the community leadership. That failure to communicate is unacceptable.”
The fallout was immediate. Surgical equipment bound for city hospitals failed to arrive. Medical evacuation flights were diverted more than 40 miles away to Las Cruces, New Mexico. By mid-morning, El Paso International Airport reported 14 cancellations and 13 delays.
U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar also cast doubt on the administration’s version of events. She said neither she nor local officials were informed in advance of the shutdown. She learned about it late Tuesday from a federal workforce contact.
“The information coming from the administration does not add up,” Escobar said. She noted that drone incursions in the region are not uncommon and have occurred for years.
The original FAA notice had ordered a 10-day airspace closure — a move that would have effectively shut down air travel in the nation’s 23rd-largest city. Yet within hours, the restriction was lifted.
Escobar emphasized that if there had truly been a credible threat to El Paso, the shutdown would not have been reversed so quickly.
Airlines scrambled to respond. Southwest Airlines confirmed operations resumed after the FAA cleared the airspace, urging customers to check flight statuses before heading to the airport.
As of now, Fort Bliss officials have not publicly commented.
So what really happened? A cartel drone incursion? A military coordination breakdown? Or something else entirely?
For residents of El Paso, the biggest concern may not be the drones — but the glaring communication gap between Washington and the border city caught in the middle.
One thing is certain: the sudden shutdown exposed vulnerabilities in coordination at the highest levels. And until clearer answers emerge, the questions aren’t going away.
JUST IN: The move to shut down El Paso airspace for 10 days was triggered by Mexican cartel drones breaching US airspace, according to CBS News.
“War Dept took action to disable the drones,” reported @JenniferJJacobs.
The Federal Aviation Administration has since lifted the… pic.twitter.com/0YZfqriEQ7
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) February 11, 2026
The move to shut down El Paso airspace for 10 days was triggered by Mexican cartel drones breaching US airspace, according to CBS News.
“War Dept took action to disable the drones,” reported @JenniferJJacobs.
The Federal Aviation Administration has since lifted the temporary closure of airspace.
