CONFUSION AND ALARM: 10-Day ‘National Defense’ Airspace Shutdown Over El Paso Revoked Hours Later Amid Military Drone Dispute
EL PASO, TEXAS – A sudden and unprecedented order by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to close the airspace over El Paso and parts of New Mexico for 10 days has been rescinded after causing chaos, grounded flights, and widespread confusion along the U.S.-Mexico border.
Late Tuesday, February 10, the FAA issued a startling Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM), effective immediately, declaring the skies over El Paso and Santa Teresa, New Mexico, as “National Defense Airspace.” The directive, which grounded all civilian flights—including commercial airliners and medical evacuations—warned that the U.S. military would intercept, detain, and potentially use deadly force against any aircraft violating the zone.
The shutdown, originally scheduled to last until February 21, was lifted early Wednesday morning, approximately eight hours after it began. While skies are now open, conflicting official narratives and objections from local leaders have sparked a deepening controversy.
Deep Search: What Really Happened
The initial order was triggered by what U.S. Northern Command and NORAD identified as a security threat requiring immediate military clearance. While the FAA cited “special security reasons,” emerging reports suggest the closure was precipitated by a breakdown in coordination between federal agencies regarding counter-drone operations.
The Official Narrative: Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy stated that the shutdown was a response to a “cartel drone incursion” from Mexico. He asserted that the FAA and Department of Defense acted swiftly to neutralize the threat and that commercial travel was safe to resume.
The Unofficial Reality: Multiple defense and aviation sources indicate the “threat” may have stemmed from a U.S. military test of high-energy laser weapons designed to disable drones. Reports suggest the Pentagon authorized a laser test near Fort Bliss to intercept a target—possibly a balloon mistaken for a drone—without fully coordinating with the FAA. To prevent commercial airliners from flying into a live-fire laser zone, the FAA implemented the 10-day “National Defense” shutdown as a failsafe, only to retract it once the operation concluded.
Objections and Conflicting Accounts
The explanation of a “cartel drone” has been met with skepticism and direct contradiction from key officials.
Local Leadership Blindsided: U.S. Representative Veronica Escobar (D-El Paso) publicly disputed the administration’s claims, stating, “The statement by the administration that this shutdown was linked to a Mexican cartel drone… is not my understanding.” She emphasized that Congress had not been briefed on such a threat and demanded an explanation for why local authorities were left in the dark.
Mexican Government Denial: Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum rejected the U.S. account, asserting that her government had no record of drones crossing the border at that time and that Mexican airspace remained open and unaffected.
Operational Disruption: El Paso Mayor Renard Johnson condemned the lack of communication, noting that the order grounded critical medical emergency flights, forcing them to divert to Las Cruces, New Mexico. “This was a major and unnecessary disruption, one that has not occurred since 9/11,” Johnson said.
Background: National Defense Airspace
The designation of “National Defense Airspace” is a rare classification typically reserved for active combat zones or high-security events (such as a Presidential visit or the immediate aftermath of the September 11 attacks).
Deadly Force Warning: The specific language alarming the public—that aircraft “will be shot down”—is standard protocol for this designation. The NOTAM explicitly stated: “The United States government may use deadly force against the airborne aircraft, if it is determined that the aircraft poses an imminent security threat.”*
Drone Warfare Context: The U.S. border has increasingly become a testing ground for counter-UAS (Unmanned Aerial Systems) technology. Cartels use drones for surveillance and smuggling, while the U.S. military uses the region to test directed-energy weapons (lasers) and microwave interceptors. The friction between testing experimental weapons and maintaining safe civil aviation corridors appears to be the root cause of this incident.
As operations at El Paso International Airport return to normal, the focus has shifted to Washington, where lawmakers are calling for an investigation into the communication failure that severed a major American city from the national airspace system overnight.
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