The Federal Aviation Administration announced on Friday a prohibition on drone flights by non-authorised operators in airspace along the US-Mexico border, part of a broader effort to address reported concerns over cross-border narcotics trafficking. Under the temporary flight restriction, drone operations lacking proper authorisation are prohibited at altitudes reaching 400 feet (122 metres) above the ground, across a zone stretching one nautical mile northward from the border.
A memorandum of understanding between the FAA and the Pentagon, finalised in April, cleared the path for deploying a high-energy laser system designed to neutralise unmanned aerial vehicles operating along the US-Mexico border. According to figures released by the Pentagon, drone activity crossing the border has been recorded at more than 1,000 instances per month.
Security personnel have grown increasingly vocal about cartel-operated drones being deployed to ferry drug consignments or monitor smuggling corridors. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth stated that limiting unauthorised drone flights would give military commanders broader situational awareness and more response options, and that any cartel drone perceived as a threat to national sovereignty would be brought down.
Separately, the FAA announced a ten-day suspension of all flights at El Paso's Texas airport in February, citing Customs and Border Protection's deployment of a Pentagon laser system ahead of the completion of an FAA safety review. Customs and Border Protection operates as an agency within the Department of Homeland Security.
About eight hours after the grounding notice took effect at El Paso, the FAA lifted it — a decision that followed contact from the White House. A CBP drone was brought down by the laser-based system when military personnel activated it several days afterward, prompting the FAA to widen a no-fly zone in the vicinity of Fort Hancock, Texas. Following the episode, the Department of Homeland Security outlined plans to strengthen its coordination with partner agencies going forward.
Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin stated Friday that the new restrictions were intended to counter drone activity linked to cartels, protect border personnel, and extend airspace controls along the boundary. His statement came against a backdrop of earlier news accounts reporting unmanned aircraft had been spotted over Fort McNair in Washington, the residence of Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Pete Hegseth.
During testimony before a broadcast news outlet in May, FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford stated that counter-drone technology of that type operates exclusively along the southern border, with Fort McNair — situated near Reagan Washington National Airport — falling outside its deployment area.
