The breach prompted the closure of an airport in Texas.
Multiple drones operated by cartels in Mexico entered the United States, a Trump administration official said on Feb. 11.
“Mexican cartel drones breached US airspace,” the official told The Epoch Times via email.
The Department of War disabled the drones, according to the official.
The department and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) then determined that there is no threat to commercial travel.
The FAA had halted all flights to and from El Paso International Airport early Wednesday for unspecified reasons. The FAA said in a statement at 8:54 a.m. ET that the temporary closure had been lifted and that all flights would resume as normal.
El Paso is situated in western Texas. The city, which has a population of about 875,000, borders Mexico. Flights often come into El Paso’s airport from Mexico.
Rep. Veronica Escobar (D-Texas), who represents El Paso in the House of Representatives, had said that officials gave no advance notice of the closure of the airport and surrounding airspace.
“The FAA is rightfully lifting the Temporary Restricted Airspace,” she wrote after the announcement that the airport would reopen. “I will again reiterate there is no threat to El Paso or the surrounding areas.”
The FAA had said in January that operators should be cautious when flying over portions of Mexico, Central America, and South America, due to “military activities” and signal interference. The warning was later lifted.
This is a developing story that will be updated.
By Zachary Stieber and Emel Akan
