Report: Anti-Drone Laser Test Prompted El Paso Airspace Closure

Elected officials push for answers after sudden shutdown.

Zach Vasile

Thursday, February 12, 2026 at 02:00 PM ET

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Edited By:

Travis Tingle

A Southwest Airlines 737 is loaded for a flight at El Paso International Airport. [Credit: Shutterstock/Royce Ngiam]

Key Takeaways:

The brief shutdown of El Paso airspace was attributed to confusion surrounding U.S. Customs and Border Protection's (CBP) testing of a high-powered anti-drone laser at the U.S.-Mexico border, which once mistakenly targeted a party balloon.
A significant miscommunication occurred, as the FAA restricted flights for 10 days after CBP's notification, but the White House, Pentagon, DHS, and local El Paso officials were not properly alerted, drawing criticism from the city's mayor.
The anti-drone laser was being deployed to counter foreign drones, including those operated by drug cartels, active near the border, with one cartel-operated UAV reportedly disabled during operations.

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A new possible explanation for the brief shutdown of the airspace in El Paso, Texas, surfaced late Wednesday—confusion over the testing of an anti-drone laser at the U.S.-Mexico border.

Sources cited by CBS News said the Defense Department has been experimenting with a high-powered laser at Fort Bliss, which abuts El Paso International Airport (KELP). The technology was used by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) earlier this week to target a suspected drone, which turned out to be a party balloon.