Spain’s Iberia, Portugal’s TAP, Chile’s LATAM, Colombia’s Avianca, Brazil’s GOL and Trinidad and Tobago’s Caribbean Airlines all suspended flights to the country on Saturday, AFP news agency reported, citing Maricela de Loaiza, head of the Venezuelan Airlines Association.
According to Al Jazeera, TAP announced it was canceling flights scheduled for Saturday and next Tuesday, while Iberia announced it would suspend flights to Venezuela’s capital Caracas until further notice.
TAP told Reuters the decision was related to a U.S. notification “indicating that the security status of Venezuelan airspace is not guaranteed.”
According to AFP, Panama’s Copa Airlines, Spain’s Air Europa and Plus Ultra, Turkish Airlines and Venezuela’s LASER are continuing to operate for now.
The flight suspension comes amid rising tensions between the United States and Venezuela, with the U.S. government sending troops and the world’s largest aircraft carrier to the Caribbean as part of an anti-drug operation. But Caracas says the operation is aimed at removing Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro from power.
The U.S. military also carried out at least 21 attacks against suspected drug smuggling vessels in the Caribbean and Pacific Ocean, killing at least 83 people.
MNA