The Federal Aviation Administration reopened the airspace around El Paso International Airport in Texas on Wednesday morning, just hours after announcing a closure that would have grounded all flights for 10 days.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe temporary closure of airspace over El Paso has been lifted,\u201d the FAA said in a statement posted on social media<\/a>. \u201cThere is no threat to commercial aviation. All flights will resume as normal.\u201d<\/p>\n In a post on X<\/a>, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said that the FAA and U.S. Defense Department \u201cacted swiftly to address a cartel drone incursion.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe threat has been neutralized, and there is no danger to commercial travel in the region,\u201d Duffy wrote. \u201cThe restrictions have been lifted and normal flights are resuming.\u201d<\/p>\n But according to the Associated Press<\/a>, the sudden closure stemmed from a dispute between the FAA and the Pentagon over the military\u2019s plans to \u201ctest a laser for use in shooting down drones used by Mexican drug cartels.\u201d<\/p>\n The plan \u201ccaused friction with the [FAA,] which wanted to ensure commercial air safety,\u201d the AP reported. \u201cDespite a meeting scheduled later this month to discuss the issue, the Pentagon wanted to go ahead and test it, prompting the FAA to shutter the airspace.\u201d According to CNN<\/a>, the FAA\u2019s decision to close the airspace \u201cwas made without telling the White House first.\u201d<\/p>\n A notice posted on the FAA\u2019s website<\/a> late Tuesday said the flight restrictions were for \u201cspecial security reasons\u201d but did not provide additional details.\u00a0All flights were grounded through Feb. 20, and the FAA encouraged travelers to contact their airlines for updates.<\/p>\n The move surprised local officials, who said there was no advance notice given to the city or anyone involved in airport operations.<\/p>\n At a news conference, El Paso Mayor Renard Johnson blasted the FAA’s decision to close the airspace without warning.<\/p>\n \u201cI want to be very, very clear that this should\u2019ve never happened,\u201d Johnson said. \u201cYou cannot restrict airspace over a major city without coordinating with the city, the airport, the hospitals, the community leadership.\u201d<\/p>\n He added: \u201cThat failure to communicate is unacceptable.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe highly consequential decision by FAA to shut down the El Paso Airport for 10 days is unprecedented and resulted in significant concern within the community,\u201d Rep. Veronica Escobar, a Democrat whose district includes El Paso, said in a statement before the closure was lifted<\/a>. \u201cFrom what my office and I have been able to gather overnight and early this morning, there is no immediate threat to the community or surrounding areas.\u201d<\/p>\n Escobar later cast doubt on Duffy\u2019s explanation.<\/p>\n \u201cThere have been drone incursions from Mexico going back to as long as drones existed. So this is nothing new,\u201d she said at a news conference. \u201cThe drone incursion from Mexico \u2014 obviously not something any of us want to see. But this is not unusual, and there was nothing extraordinary about any drone incursion into the U.S. that I\u2019m aware of.\u201d<\/p>\n