Rep. Vasquez Secures Win in Fight for Accountability & Answers from Dept. of Defense on El Paso Airport Closure

WASHINGTON, D.C. – On June 4, 2026, U.S. Representative Gabe Vasquez (NM-02) — in his role as a member of the House Armed Services Committee — secured a critical, bipartisan win in his ongoing fight to get the accountability and answers New Mexicans deserve from the Department of Defense regarding the chaotic closure of the El Paso Airport in February 2026. 

During committee markup, Rep. Vasquez introduced an amendment to the Fiscal Year 2027 National Defense Authorization Act requiring the Department of Defense to provide a report on its coordination process with DHS and FAA, an explanation as to what caused the chaotic closure of the El Paso Airport in February, and details on how such incidents can be prevented in the future. 

He also introduced an amendment pushing the DoD to share information and data on the safety, feasibility, capabilities of directed energy drones the Department is using and testing domestically to keep our country safe while preventing incidents like the El Paso Airport closure from happening again. Both measures passed and will move forward for consideration by the full House of Representatives. 

“On February 11, the Department of Defense and Federal Aviation Administration were responsible for a huge failure, and it left southern New Mexicans in a state of chaos and confusion. That is unacceptable,” said Vasquez. “I will keep fighting every step of the way to get the answers and accountability New Mexicans deserve and assurance that this will never happen again.”

On February 11, 2026, the FAA announced a 10-day closure of the El Paso Airport citing “special security concerns.” The restrictions were lifted by the FAA within hours of being issued after Congressional inquiry. All flights, including commercial, cargo, and general aviation, were initially grounded, causing chaos and confusion in the region as the FAA provided no advance notice to Congress, local leadership, or airport officials. 

Today’s win builds on Rep. Vasquez’s ongoing work to get New Mexicans the answers they deserve regarding what caused the airport closure on February 11 and to ensure similar incidents do not occur again in the future:

• On the morning of February 11, 2026, Rep. Vasquez provided constituents with updates on the status of the El Paso Airport closure, demanded transparency and answers from the DoD, and helped reopen the airport with Congressional oversight.
• On February 12, 2026, Reps. Vasquez and Escobar, as well as Senators Heinrich and Luján, demanded a classified briefing on the airspace closure. 
• On March 17, 2026, Rep. Vasquez pressed Assistant Secretary Joseph Humire for answers as to where the communications failure occurred and what steps the DoD was taking to prevent similar chaotic, dangerous situations from occurring in the future.
  • Vasquez also asked Humire about the risks counter-drone laser systems being used by the DoD posed to civilians and secured a commitment for a briefing from DoD officials on the incident, which took place on April 28, 2026. 

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