Daijiworld Media Network – Washington
Washington, Feb 27: The US military used a laser system to shoot down a drone operated by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), prompting the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to temporarily close portions of airspace near El Paso, members of Congress said on Thursday.
It remains unclear why the laser was deployed, but lawmakers noted that this marks the second such incident in the region within two weeks.
In the earlier episode, a laser was fired near Fort Bliss, about 50 miles northwest of El Paso, though it did not hit a target. That incident led the FAA to shut down air traffic at El Paso International Airport and surrounding airspace for several hours, causing flight cancellations in the border city of nearly 700,000 residents.
This time, the FAA implemented a more limited airspace closure, and commercial flights were reportedly not affected. In a brief statement, the FAA confirmed it had expanded restrictions around Fort Hancock following the latest incident.
US Representative Rick Larsen and several senior Democrats on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee expressed alarm over the development.
“Our heads are exploding over the news,” the lawmakers said in a joint statement, criticising the administration for “sidestepping” bipartisan legislation aimed at improving drone operator training and coordination between the Pentagon, FAA and the Department of Homeland Security.
They alleged that the episode reflected broader coordination failures within the government.
Earlier reporting indicated that during the previous incident, CBP used an anti-drone laser provided by the military to shoot down what was later identified as party balloons. According to sources, the agency had not coordinated the action with the FAA, which subsequently moved to close the airspace as a precaution.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said he planned to brief members of Congress about the situation. Speaking at a recent news conference, he defended the FAA’s decision to close the airspace, stating that it was not a mistake and suggesting that communication lapses were not necessarily the cause of the disruption.
The incident has revived concerns about inter-agency coordination, particularly in light of findings from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) regarding a fatal midair collision near Washington, DC, last year. That probe highlighted shortcomings in information-sharing between the FAA and the Pentagon, including unaddressed risks related to close calls near Reagan National Airport.
Investigations into the latest laser deployment and airspace closure are ongoing.