Venezuela Grows More Cut Off by Air as Foreign Airlines Halt Flights
Airline Withdrawals and Rising Safety Concerns
Venezuela grows more cut off by air as foreign airlines halt flights to and from the country. They cite risks to planes and passengers from rising US military moves in the Caribbean.
Bolivana Aviación and Satina from Colombia stopped flights to Caracas on Thursday. Cubana de Aviación from Panamania pushed its halt to December 12. All pointed to safety issues.
Big names like Iberia, TAP, Avianca, GOL, LATAM, Air Europa, Turkish Airlines, and Plus Ultra had quit earlier. Caracas called it "state terrorism" from Washington. It yanked their licenses.
Airlines have quit Venezuela before. Back in 2013, during the deepening money crunch, many pulled out over $3.8 billion in unpaid bills from the government.
The latest round started with a US Federal Aviation Administration alert. It told pilots to use "extreme caution" from poor security and more military action near Venezuela.
President Donald Trump shared the alert on social media. He warned: "To all airlines, pilots, drug traffickers, and people… The airspace over and around Venezuela is totally closed."
Military Tensions and Political Reactions
Venezuela controls 1.2 million square kilometers of sky. It includes sea zones near US warships Trump sent to fight drug runs.
The US sent its biggest carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, plus many ships and jets.
President Nicolás Maduro says the real goal is to topple him and grab Venezuela's oil.
Oscar Palma, a security expert at Colombia's Rosario University, told AFP it's no full ban. But the sky is "practically closed."
He said blocking enemy air needs power to down planes and the will to act. "Will the US president really force it? We doubt it. But with Trump, who knows."
Washington said yesterday it hit a Pacific boat for drugs. Four died.
Since last September, US forces killed 87 in 20 such hits, mostly on Caribbean boats.
