Texas airspace closed after military reportedly downs US drone on accident

The Federal Aviation Administration barred flights on Thursday in an area around Fort Hancock, Texas, after congressional aides told Reuters a military laser-based anti-drone system was believed to have accidentally shot down a US government drone.The FAA and Pentagon did not immediately comment but the FAA cited “special security reasons” in its notice about the restrictions on the airspace near the Mexican border posted on its Notam alert system, shorthand for “Notice to Air Missions”.The airspace restriction around Fort Hancock took effect at 6.30pm local time on Thursday and remains in effect until 24 June, according to the notice.Three House Democrats on committees that oversee the nation’s transportation and homeland security agencies – Rick Larsen, André Carson and Bennie Thompson – said they were stunned by the news that the FAA had to close airspace in Texas again after two parts of the government apparently failed to coordinate a laser strike on an object mistaken for a foreign drone.“Our heads are exploding over the news,” the representatives said in a statement, referring to the news that the defense department “reportedly shot down a Customs and Border Protection drone using a high risk counter-unmanned aircraft system”, using the technical name for an anti-drone laser weapon.The Democrats added that they had warned months ago that “the White House’s decision to sidestep a bipartisan, tri-committee bill to appropriately train C-UAS operators and address the lack of coordination between the Pentagon, DHS and the FAA was a short-sighted idea. Now, we’re seeing the result of its incompetence.”Earlier this month, the FAA said it was halting traffic for 10 days at the airport in El Paso, Texas, only to reverse course and lift its order after about eight hours, after border protection agents reportedly used a laser-based anti-drone system on loan from the Pentagon to shoot down a party balloon.Reuters and other media reported that closure stemmed from concerns about the use of the laser-based anti-drone system.