On Wednesday morning, the White House confirmed drone activity from Mexican drug cartels caused the sudden closure of U.S. airspace over El Paso, Texas.
In a statement to Newsweek the White House said: “Mexican cartel drones breached US airspace. The Department of War took action to disable the drones.
“The FAA and DOW have determined there is no threat to commercial travel.”
A Trump administration official told Fox News that the initial lockdown came in response to “Mexican cartel drones” that breached U.S. airspace. The FAA had announced Wednesday morning that all flights to and from El Paso were being grounded, including commercial, cargo and general aviation. The restriction was initially set to be effective from February 10 at 11:30 p.m. MST to February 20 at 11:30 p.m. MST.
“Mexican cartel drones breached US airspace. The Department of War took action to disable the drones. The FAA and DOW have determined there is no threat to commercial travel,” the official told Fox News.
Restrictions set earlier by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) have been lifted and authorities say there remains no threat to commercial air travel.
“The temporary closure of airspace over El Paso has been lifted. There is no threat to commercial aviation. All flights will resume as normal,” the FAA said on its X account.
This is a breaking news story. Please check back for updates.
