The Federal Aviation Administration suddenly lifts the order grounding El Paso airport flights for 10 days

The Federal Aviation Administration suddenly halted all flights to and from El Paso International Airport in Texas for 10 days starting Wednesday, citing a “special security” advisory, then lifted the order hours later.

“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 in a post on X’s website.

The Federal Aviation Administration did not immediately cite the security reasons for the temporary stop. The airport is located next to Biggs Military Airport and near the Mexican border, about 12 miles from Juarez, Mexico. The Pentagon referred a question about the nature of the security issue to the Federal Aviation Administration.

Flights were initially grounded until late February 20 and the ban was applied to a 10 nautical mile area around the airport.

While the FAA regularly halts flights at airports due to weather and traffic, there is a security issue that is highly unusual as effectively closing airspace for such a long period.

U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar, a Texas Democrat whose district includes much of El Paso, said the move to suddenly close the airspace was “unprecedented.” “From what my office and I have been able to gather throughout the night and early this morning, there is no immediate threat to the community or surrounding areas,” she said.

“No advance notice was provided to my office, the city of El Paso, or anyone involved in airport operations,” she said in a statement. “We have urged the FAA to immediately lift the temporary flight restrictions imposed on the El Paso area.”

The airport served nearly 3.5 million people in the first 11 months of 2025 and serves Southwest Airlines, Delta Airlines, American Airlines, United Airlines and Frontier AirlinesAccording to airport data.

There were 1,314 scheduled departures at El Paso Airport this month, according to aviation data company Cirium.

United has waived change fees for customers who need to move their flights due to airspace closures. Southwest said it has contacted affected passengers.

“Nothing is more important to Southwest than the safety of its customers and employees,” she said.