The Federal Aviation Administration halted flights into and out of El Paso International Airport on Tuesday night at 11:30 pm local time (1:30 am EST Wednesday) and said the restrictions would remain in place for 10 days. In its notice, the FAA also restricted air space extended in a radius of 10 nautical miles from the airport.
Shortly afterward, the airport posted a note on its social media accounts confirming the closure.
“All flights to and from El Paso are grounded, including commercial, cargo and general aviation,” the airport stated. “The FAA has issued a flight restriction halting all flights to and from El Paso effective from February 10 at 11:30 PM (MST) to February 20 at 11:30PM (MST). Travelers should contact their airlines to get most up-to-date flight status information.”
The FAA offered no explanation for the closure aside from determining that the area was classified as “national defense airspace,” and adding that the United States government may use “deadly force” against any airborne aircraft. According to reporting from The New York Times, local officials in El Paso and statewide were not given advance notice for the air space closure.
It is rare for airspace over a major airport to be closed for any extended period of time. The El Paso airport serves more than 3 million customers a month, and according to the 2020 US Census, it lies in the 22nd most-populous city in the United States.
The abrupt notice from federal officials, offered without explanation, spurred large amounts of speculation on social media about the nature of the closing. Possible explanations include military operations near Fort Bliss, which has its headquarters nearby and facilities in nearby southeast New Mexico. It is also possible there is a national security threat or border operations in nearby Mexico.
None of this has been confirmed by federal authorities.