AdvertisementAmericas and the CaribbeanWorldAmericasCaribbean holidaymakers stranded after US operation to seize Maduro halts flights
Even though the airspace restrictions will end at midnight on Sunday, airlines have warned that disruptions could continue for days
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Associated PressThe US military operation that captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and flew him out of the country early on Saturday also disrupted Caribbean travel at a busy travel time for the region.
No airline flights were crossing over Venezuela that day, according to FlightRadar24.com. Major airlines cancelled hundreds of flights across the eastern Caribbean region and warned passengers that disruptions could continue for days after the Federal Aviation Administration imposed restrictions.
Flights were cancelled to and from Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Aruba and more than a dozen other destinations in the Lesser Antilles island group north of Venezuela. Airlines waived change fees for passengers who had to reschedule flights.Advertisement
But US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said on Saturday night that the restrictions would end at midnight and airlines would be able to resume normal operations on Sunday.
Even after the removal of curbs, however, airlines would need several days to restore normal operations, airline analyst Robert Mann said. “They have a day’s worth of passengers basically”, already stranded in the Caribbean.
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Southwest Airlines said in a statement that it added six extra round-trip flights to Puerto Rico on Sunday’s schedule and another eight round-trips on Monday to help get travellers home from their holidays. It also added two additional Sunday flights to Aruba.
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