Caribbean air travel erupted into chaos over the weekend after US military captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, prompting sweeping airspace restrictions across the region.
According to FlightRadar24, no commercial aircraft were flying over Venezuelan airspace on Saturday. The US Federal Aviation Administration also imposed restrictions that forced major airlines to cancel hundreds of flights across the eastern Caribbean, disrupting travel during an already busy holiday period. Airlines warned passengers that delays and cancellations could continue for several days.
US transportation secretary Sean Duffy said the FAA acted in the interest of passenger safety. In a post on social media, he said “the FAA restricted the airspace in the Caribbean and Venezuela to ensure the SAFETY of the flying public.”
“When appropriate, these airspace restrictions will be lifted,” he added on the social platform X. “Please work with your airlines directly if your flight has been impacted.”
Flights disrupted across key Caribbean destinations
Services were cancelled or suspended to and from several major destinations, including:
- Puerto Rico
- Aruba
- The US Virgin Islands
- The British Virgin Islands
- More than a dozen islands in the Lesser Antilles, north of Venezuela
Airlines said they were waiving change fees for travellers forced to alter their plans.
Aruba’s Queen Beatrix International Airport, located just 15 miles (24 kilometres) off Venezuela’s coast and popular with US holidaymakers, saw widespread cancellations on Saturday, according to airport authorities, normal operations were expected to resume on Sunday.
The disruption extended beyond aviation. In Barbados, PM Mia Mottley said that the situation had affected both air and sea entry points. Speaking at a news conference, she said “the consequences of the conflict have been exceedingly disruptive to both of our ports of entry,” referring to the country’s airport and its cruise ship terminal.
How are airlines dealing — Modifications, rescheduling & more
Earlier, the FAA said it had imposed a temporary airspace restriction affecting Puerto Rico’s main international airport and surrounding areas. A statement posted on X by Luis Munoz Marin International Airport in San Juan said the move was due to the “security situation related to military activity” in Venezuela.
Most commercial flights operated by US airlines to and from the airport were suspended or cancelled as a result, although foreign airlines and military aircraft were exempt from the restriction.
JetBlue: About 215 flights were cancelled “due to airspace closures across the Caribbean related to military activity.” However, services to destinations further west, including the Dominican Republic and Jamaica, were unaffected. Customers were offered rebooking options or refunds.
United Airlines: Modifying its schedule to account for the closures and allowing passengers to change travel plans without fees as it continued to monitor the situation in coordination with US aviation authorities.
Southwest Airlines: Cancelled all flights to Aruba on Saturday and suspended services to Puerto Rico until further notice, while flights to the Dominican Republic continued.
American Airlines: Waiving change fees for flights to and from around 20 island destinations, including Anguilla, Antigua, Curacao, Saint Lucia, and the US and British Virgin Islands.
Delta Air Lines: Issued a travel waiver for customers travelling through 13 affected airports until Tuesday.
Dutch carrier KLM: Cancelled flights affecting thousands of passengers but planned to resume services on Sunday to Curacao, Aruba, Bonaire and other Caribbean destinations.
'Really painful on the wallet'
For many travellers, the impact was immediate. Lou Levine and his family were due to return to the Washington, DC, area from Puerto Rico on Saturday morning when they discovered their JetBlue flight had been cancelled. Attempts to rebook by phone failed, and the family later turned to social media for help.
Eventually, JetBlue rebooked them on a flight departing the following Saturday, extending what was meant to be a week-long New Year holiday into a two-week stay.
Levine said that his employer had been accommodating, but the disruption has come at a cost as his daughter will now miss a week of high school, and the family will have to undergo additional expenses.
“I love it here. But we have dog-sitting and cat-sitting and car rental. It’s fine. It’s just really painful on the wallet,” Levine said.
The family hopes to secure an earlier return if flights resume sooner.
Peak travel season
The cancellations came shortly after the peak holiday travel period, during which, according to AAA, nearly 122.4 million Americans travelled at least 50 miles from home. However, many travellers were still in the Caribbean, attempting to return ahead of work and school commitments.
“The Caribbean is a top destination this time of the year,” said AAA spokesperson Aixa Diaz. “We do have a lot of people who are trying to get back home this weekend ahead of work and school on Monday.”
Diaz urged travellers to stay informed and allow airlines to send updates, noting that while “it’s understandable we want to unplug,” monitoring developments remains important.
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