FAA halts El Paso airport flights for 10 days, citing 'special security' instructions

The Federal Aviation Administration abruptly grounded all flights in and out of El Paso Airport in Texas for 10 days starting Wednesday, citing "special security" instructions.

The FAA didn't immediately say what the security reasons for the sudden halt are. The airport sits next to Biggs Army Airfield and is near the Mexican border, about 12 miles from Juarez, Mexico. The Pentagon referred a question about the nature of the security issue to the FAA.

Flights are halted until late Feb. 20 and the ban applies to a 10-nautical-mile area around the airport.

The airport served nearly 3.5 million people in the first 11 months of 2025 and is served by Southwest Airlines, Delta Air Lines, American Airlines, United Airlines and Frontier Airlines, according to airport data.

There were 1,314 departures scheduled for the El Paso airport this month, according to aviation-data firm Cirium.

United waived change fees for customers who need to move their flights because of the airspace closure. Southwest said it has reached out to affected travelers.

"Nothing is more important to Southwest than the Safety of its Customers and Employees," it said.