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The U.S. subject utilized a laser Thursday (February 26, 2026) to sprout down a “seemingly threatening” drone flying adjacent the U.S.-Mexico border. It turned retired the drone belonged to Customs and Border Protection (CBP), lawmakers said.
The lawsuit of mistaken individuality prompted the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to adjacent further airspace astir Fort Hancock, astir 50 miles (80 kilometres) southeast of El Paso. The subject is required to formally notify the FAA erstwhile it takes immoderate counter-drone enactment wrong U.S. airspace.
It was the 2nd clip successful 2 weeks that a laser was fired successful the area. The past clip it was CBP that utilized the limb and thing was hit. That incidental occurred adjacent Fort Bliss and prompted the FAA to unopen down aerial postulation astatine El Paso airdrome and the surrounding area. This time, the closure was smaller and commercialized flights were not affected.
Washington U.S. Rep. Rick Larsen and 2 different apical Democrats connected the House Transportation and Infrastructure and Homeland Security committees said they were stunned erstwhile they were officially notified.
“Our heads are exploding implicit the news,” the lawmakers said successful a associated statement. They criticised the Trump medication for “sidestepping” a bipartisan measure to bid drone operators and amended connection among the Pentagon, FAA and Department of Homeland Security, which includes CBP.
“Now, we’re seeing the effect of its incompetence,” they said.
The FAA, CBP and the Pentagon issued a associated connection connected precocious Thursday (February 26, 2026) that acknowledged the subject “employed counter-unmanned craft strategy authorities to mitigate a seemingly threatening unmanned aerial strategy operating wrong subject airspace.”
The connection said it happened acold from populated areas and commercialized flights arsenic portion of the administration's efforts to fortify protections astatine the border.
“At President Trump’s direction, the Department of War, FAA, and Customs and Border Patrol are moving unneurotic successful an unprecedented manner to mitigate drone threats by Mexican cartels and overseas violent organisations astatine the U.S.-Mexico Border," the connection said.
The El Paso shutdown 2 weeks agone lasted lone a fewer hours, but it raised alarm and led to a fig of formation cancellations successful the metropolis of astir 700,000 people.
In that case, an anti-drone laser was deployed by CBP without coordinating with the FAA, which past decided to adjacent the El Paso airspace to guarantee commercialized aerial safety, according to sources acquainted with what happened who weren’t authorised to sermon it.
Afterward, members of Congress said it appeared to beryllium different illustration of antithetic agencies failing to coordinate with each other.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said helium was readying to little members of Congress astir the incident. He said astatine an unrelated quality league past Friday (February 20, 2026) that it wasn’t a mistake for the FAA to adjacent the airspace successful El Paso and that helium doesn’t deliberation it was a connection contented that led to the problems.
Illinois Democratic U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth, the ranking subordinate connected the Senate’s Aviation Subcommittee, called for an autarkic investigation.
“The Trump administration’s incompetence continues to origin chaos successful our skies,” Mr. Duckworth said.
The probe into past year’s midair collision adjacent Washington, D.C., betwixt an airliner and an Army chopper that killed 67 radical highlighted however the FAA and Pentagon were not ever moving good together.
The National Transportation Safety Board said the FAA and the Army did not stock information information with each different astir the alarming fig of adjacent calls astir Reagan National Airport and failed to code the risks.
