Multiple reports say the recent airspace closure around El Paso, Texas, was caused by the U.S. military shooting down a party balloon amid a behind-the-scenes dispute with aviation safety officials.
That contradicts the explanation offered Tuesday by administration officials who claimed the shutdown was necessary because a drone operated by a Mexican drug cartel was shot down while crossing the southern border.
Angry mayors of border cities said flights were grounded at El Paso International Airport and inbound planes, including medevac flights, were forced to be rerouted to Las Cruces, New Mexico, 45 minutes away.
A notice from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) shows the affected areas. / FAA
“I want to make it very, very clear that this should never have happened,” Mayor Leonard Johnson said at a news conference Wednesday. “You can’t restrict the skies over big cities without coordinating with city, airport, hospital, community leadership… This lack of communication is unacceptable.”
Sources told CBS News that the dramatic downing and airspace closure “stem from disagreements between FAA and Pentagon officials over drone-related testing,” suggesting friction between federal officials and the military.
Fort Bliss, adjacent to the city’s airport, has received new laser technology that the Pentagon, led by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, is eager to test as soon as possible to practice shooting down drones, the network’s sources said.
There are reports that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is eager to test new counter-drone technology. /Fort Worth Star-Telegram/TNS
Meanwhile, the FAA hopes to hold a meeting on “undue safety implications” later this month, CBS reported. Sources also told The New York Times that the FAA is “concerned” that new counter-drone technology “could pose a risk to other aircraft in the area.”
Neither the Pentagon nor the FAA responded to requests for comment. Mexican officials said they had seen no evidence that the drone was shot down over the border.
El Paso’s airspace was initially declared closed for 10 days, an unusual period for a commercial airport of its size, but reopened early Wednesday after it was determined there was no credible threat to air travel.
