SAEDNEWS: Six international airlines have suspended flights to Venezuela after the United States warned major carriers about a “potentially hazardous situation” due to “heightened military activity” around the South American country.
Spain’s Iberia, Portugal’s TAP, Chile’s LATAM, Colombia’s Avianca, Brazil’s GOL, and Trinidad and Tobago’s Caribbean Airlines all halted flights to Venezuela on Saturday, AFP reported, citing Marisela de Loaiza, president of the Venezuelan Airlines Association.
TAP announced it would cancel flights scheduled for Saturday and next Tuesday, while Iberia said it would suspend flights to Caracas until further notice, according to Al Jazeera. TAP told Reuters its decision followed a U.S. notice stating that “safety conditions in Venezuelan airspace are not guaranteed.”
Meanwhile, Panama’s Copa Airlines, Spain’s Air Europa and PlusUltra, Turkish Airlines, and Venezuela’s LASER are still operating flights for now, AFP reported.
The suspensions come amid escalating tensions between the U.S. and Venezuela. Washington has deployed troops and the world’s largest aircraft carrier to the Caribbean in what it calls an anti-narcotics operation, while Caracas frames it as an attempt to oust President Nicolás Maduro.
The U.S. military has reportedly carried out at least 21 attacks on suspected drug boats in the Caribbean and Pacific, resulting in at least 83 deaths.
