Image: from Todd Storm X@Todd_Storm
OPEN CHRONICLE | Serving the Truth, Shaping the Future
By Open Chronicle Staff with Agencies
EL PASO, Texas — Tens of thousands of travelers were left in a state of confusion and alarm early Wednesday morning after the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) abruptly shuttered the airspace over El Paso and southern New Mexico. The unprecedented 10-day ground stop, which was initially slated to last until February 20, was lifted just hours after it began following what federal officials described as a “neutralized” security threat involving cartel drones.
The drama began late Tuesday night when the FAA issued a “National Defense Airspace” designation for a 10-nautical-mile radius around El Paso International Airport and Santa Teresa, New Mexico. The order, effective as of 11:30 p.m. MST, prohibited all commercial, cargo, and general aviation flights. The language of the Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM) was stark, warning that the U.S. government “may use deadly force” against any aircraft determined to pose an imminent security threat.
🚨 URGENT: FAA ends airspace shutdown in El Paso, Texas; “no danger to civilian flights”
“Mexican cartel drones invaded U.S. skies. The War Department intervened to neutralize the drones.” pic.twitter.com/IeEwbJsOoa
— Todd Storm (@Todd_Storm) February 11, 2026
For several hours, the region was gripped by uncertainty. Local officials, including U.S. Representative Veronica Escobar, slammed the decision as “unprecedented” and “highly consequential,” noting that neither the city nor airport operations were given any warning.
“The decision resulted in significant concern within the community,” Escobar stated before the restrictions were rescinded.
The mystery was partially solved Wednesday morning when Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced via social media that the FAA and the Department of Defense had “acted swiftly to address a cartel drone incursion.” Duffy confirmed that the threat had been neutralized and that commercial travel was once again safe.
While the “National Defense Airspace” tag was rare for a major U.S. metropolitan area, drawing comparisons to the grounding of flights on September 11, 2001, operations at El Paso International Airport are now gradually returning to normal. Airlines, including Southwest, American, and United, have begun the process of re-clearing their schedules, though hundreds of travelers are still dealing with the ripple effects of the initial wave of cancellations.
Despite the reopening, questions linger regarding the scale of the drone incursion and the specific measures taken by the military to secure the border skies. For now, the “special security reasons” that threatened to isolate the Sun City for over a week have been dismissed, and the grounded fleets are back in the air.