FAA abruptly closes El Paso airspace for 10 days over unspecified security concerns
CNN
By Karina Tsui, Diego Mendoza, Alexandra Skores, Pete Muntean, CNN
Washington (CNN) — The Federal Aviation Administration abruptly issued a temporary flight restriction that immediately grounded all flights to and from El Paso International Airport in Texas for 10 days — a shutdown that’s likely to create significant disruptions in one of America’s largest cities.
The sudden pause over El Paso, along with an area of southern New Mexico, is due to “special security reasons,” according to the FAA’s website. The FAA did not provide additional details.
However, a source familiar with the restriction who was briefed by the FAA tells CNN’s Pete Muntean the sweeping flight ban was driven by military operations from nearby Biggs Army Airfield, located on Fort Bliss. Drones, helicopters and other aircraft operate from the facility. The source said the FAA acted after the Department of Defense could not assure the safety of civilian aircraft in the area.
An FAA notice classifies the area as “(National) Defense Airspace” and says pilots who violate the restriction could be intercepted, detained and questioned by law enforcement.
It warns that additional actions could be taken for pilots who don’t adhere to the restrictions, including suspension of flight certifications, criminal charges, and that the US government “may use deadly force” if an aircraft poses an “imminent security threat.”
Audio from LiveATC.net includes the moment pilots were made aware of the grounding.
“Just pass it on to everybody else, at 06:30 for the next 10 days, we’re all at a ground stop,” a controller said.
A pilot replies, “OK, ground stop 06:30 for how long?”
“Ten days,” the controller replies.
“So the airport is totally closed?” the pilot says, chuckling.
The controller replies, “Apparently, we just got informed about 30 minutes to an hour ago.”
“So for 10 days you guys are not open,” the pilot says, in disbelief.
“Well, we’ll be here, but no air traffic,” the controller said.
“OK,” laughs the pilot.
The agency issued the restriction “on short notice,” and airport staff have reached out for further guidance, the airport said in another statement to CNN affiliate KFOX. El Paso International Airport said all commercial, cargo and general aviation flights would be grounded until February 20.
“It’s a complete ground stop … not even medevac are allowed to fly,” an air-traffic controller was heard telling flight crews of the imminent airspace closure Tuesday night.
“Wow,” a flight crew member is heard responding in the LiveATC.net audio.
El Paso, with a population of nearly 700,000, is the sixth-largest city in Texas and one of the 25 largest in the United States. It is a hub of cross-border commerce alongside neighboring Ciudad Juárez in Mexico.
Nearly 3.5 million passengers passed through El Paso International Airport in the first 11 months of 2025, according to its website. The airport describes itself as the gateway to West Texas, southern New Mexico and northern Mexico.
Samuel, a traveler in El Paso, told CNN affiliate KFOX he was doing a book tour with a client and didn’t get any notification from his airline.
“I just kind of saw all the cops here and the news cameras,” he said. “I gotta figure out what’s going on if there’s another airport that’s not in El Paso, and try to figure out and rent a car out.”
The airspace closure is expected to be extremely disruptive for El Paso, a major industrial hub, Robert Moore, the founder and CEO of news site El Paso Matters, told CNN.
“We’ve never seen anything like this here at least since 9/11, when everything was grounded,” he said.
This closure is unique, however, since it is over a specific city and there was no immediate reason apparent.
Passengers who get stranded in El Paso will have to find other options, which may include driving to the nearest major airport.
Albuquerque International Sunport is about a four-hour drive and Tucson International Airport is about five hours away.
CNN has reached out to the FAA, El Paso International Airport and the airlines that operate there for more information.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
The Associated Press and CNN’s Toni Odejimi contributed to this report.
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