Airspace closure threw travel plans into chaos on both sides of US-Mexico border

Описание: (11 Feb 2026)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:

ASSOCIATED PRESS
Ciudad Juárez, México - 11 February 2026
1. Various aerials of US-Mexico border crossing ++MUTE++
2. Various of car crossing border from Mexico into the U.S.
3. U.S. flag
4. People crossing border on foot
5. SOUNDBITE (Spanish) María Aracelia, El Paso Airport passenger:
"What's happening is that the (U.S.) government’s closure is affecting a lot of people indirectly who have to leave for business or other reasons. When I called the airline in the morning they told me the airport would close for 10 days and I have my flight now after midday.”
6. People with luggage about to walk onto pedestrian border bridge
7. Cars crossing border bridge
8. SOUNDBITE (Spanish) María Aracelia, El Paso Airport passenger:
"So I had to look for alternatives for buses to go because I had to look (for flights) from another airport. This is stressful and there isn’t time to make so many changes, especially if you need to get back for work.”
9. María Aracelia walking onto pedestrian border bridge
10. Entrance to border crossing bridge
11. SOUNDBITE (Spanish) Gloria Jacobo, Ciudad Juárez resident :
"We don't know much, that's why we came very early in case they close the bridge. That's why we came early."
12. Entrance to border crossing bridge
13. Various of border fence; sign reading (Spanish) "Federal zone, access prohibited"
14. Various aerial of border crossing ++MUTE++
STORYLINE:
The Federal Aviation Administration reopened the airspace around El Paso International Airport in Texas on Wednesday morning, just hours after it announced a 10-day closure that would have grounded all flights to and from the airport.

The shutdown was expected to create significant disruptions on both sides of U.S.-Mexican border.

El Paso, a border city with a population of nearly 700,000 and larger when the surrounding metro area is included, is a hub of cross-border commerce alongside the neighboring city of Ciudad Juárez in Mexico.

María Aracelia was pushing two roller suitcases across the pedestrian bridge to El Paso Wednesday morning from Ciudad Juarez. She had a round-trip flight to Illinois scheduled for the afternoon.

"The (U.S.) government’s closure is affecting a lot of people indirectly who have to leave for business or other reasons,” she said.

She called the airline after receiving a text message saying there was something up with her flight around 4 a.m. local time. The airline told her the airspace would be closed for 10 days.

"So I had to look for alternatives for buses to go because I had to look (for flights) from another airport,” she said. “This is stressful and there isn’t time to make so many changes, especially if you need to get back for work.”

She had just heard the restrictions were lifted, so was headed to the El Paso airport.

Gloria Jacobo, a Ciudad Juárez resident, said she decided to cross to El Paso earlier than she had planned in case they closed the border.

Ciudad Juárez is home to about 1.5 million people.

Like many border-spanning communities, some residents are accustomed to using facilities like airports on both sides of the border, depending on where they are traveling.

AP video by Christian Torres Chávez

===========================================================

Clients are reminded to adhere to all listed restrictions and to check the terms of their licence agreements. For further assistance, please contact the AP Archive on: Tel +44(0)2074827482 Email: [email protected].

Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork
Twitter:   / ap_archive  
Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​
Instagram:   / apnews  


You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...