Passengers sleep on the floor, after flights were delayed and cancelled when the airspace was closed due to U.S. strikes on Venezuela overnight, at Rafael Hernandez International Airport in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico.
REUTERS/Ricardo Arduengo
Airlines canceled flights throughout the Caribbean on Saturday following U.S. strikes on Venezuela after the Federal Aviation Administration ordered commercial aircraft to avoid airspace in parts of the region.
President Donald Trump said Saturday the U.S. strikes resulted in the capture and removal of Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro.
U.S. airlines canceled dozens of flights to airports in Puerto Rico and Aruba, according to flight tallies from FlightAware and carriers’ sites.
“American Airlines is aware of the airspace closures in the Eastern Caribbean that were issued in the middle of the night and is closely monitoring the situation with the FAA,” the carrier said in a statement. “We are making schedule adjustments as necessary with the safety and security of our customers and team members top of mind.”
Southwest Airlines and JetBlue Airways also showed cancellations in the Caribbean.
JetBlue, which has a large operation in the Caribbean, said it canceled about 215 flights “due to airspace closures across the Caribbean related to military activity.” The airline noted that flights to the Dominican Republic and Jamaica were not affected by government restrictions.
It wasn’t immediately clear how long the disruptions would last, though such broad restrictions are often temporary.
Major U.S. airlines haven’t served Venezuela directly for years. American was the last of the major U.S. carriers to stop flying to the country in 2019 amid unrest there.
