Airlines reinstate Caribbean flights after Venezuela airspace disruption
January 5, 2026
Airlines are restoring and expanding service to the Caribbean after a rare FAA airspace closure, linked to a US military operation in Venezuela, disrupted hundreds of flights and stranded travellers during the New Year travel peak.
Temporary airspace restrictions across parts of the Caribbean expired early January 4, 2026, allowing carriers to resume scheduled flying and add capacity to help clear backlogs.
US capture of Venezuelan leader shakes up Caribbean travel
At the start of 2026, a major US military operation in Venezuela—which resulted in the capture of President Nicolás Maduro—triggered heightened regional tensions. In response to the security situation and associated military activity, the FAA issued emergency notices restricting US-registered flights in key parts of Caribbean airspace on January 2–3, citing “safety-of-flight risks” near Venezuelan airspace and adjacent corridors used by commercial traffic.
Major US carriers, including American, Delta, JetBlue, Spirit, United, Southwest and Frontier, grounded or cancelled flights touching eastern Caribbean destinations. The airlines waived change and cancellation fees for affected customers to ease rebooking.
Airports in Aruba, Barbados, Curaçao, Puerto Rico and other Caribbean countries experienced heavy flight cancellations as aircraft and crews were pulled back or rerouted. Thousands of travellers were left stranded and scrambling for hotels as they awaited transport home.
JetBlue near miss in Curaçao preceded FAA airspace closure
In the weeks before the shutdown, civil aviation and military operations converging near Venezuelan airspace generated safety concerns for US commercial flights.
In December 2025, a JetBlue Airways flight departing Curaçao narrowly avoided a midair collision with a US Air Force KC-135 tanker that crossed its flight path without an active transponder. The incident highlighted the safety risk posed by mixed civil-military traffic operating in the region during the height of the standoff between the US and Venezuela.
Airlines rebuild Caribbean schedules after airspace curbs lifted
The FAA restrictions lasted roughly 24 hours, grounding flights across destinations from Puerto Rico to Aruba and the Lesser Antilles, and expired late January 3 into January 4, when carriers began restoring service.
Airlines are moving quickly to rebuild and expand Caribbean service.
American Airlines adds flights and seats with the return of interisland service
American Airlines quickly added capacity in the Caribbean once the FAA restrictions expired, resuming scheduled service and deploying additional flights and larger aircraft to help passengers reach and depart the region.
According to American Airlines’ official announcement, the airline has added 43 additional flights and nearly 7,000 additional seats to and from the Eastern Caribbean. American also restored interisland service (through its wholly owned regional carrier Envoy Air) for the first time in a decade. The interisland flights connected Anguilla Wallblake (AXA), Anguilla, and Beef Island, British Virgin Islands (EIS), to San Juan, Puerto Rico (SJU), helping consolidate passengers for flights to Miami.
American’s schedule additions span a wide range of destinations, with new and extra flights connecting Miami (MIA), Charlotte (CLT) and Chicago (ORD) to hubs such as San Juan (SJU), Aruba (AUA), Bridgetown (BGI), Curaçao (CUR), Dominica (DOM), St. Maarten (SXM) and St. Kitts (SKB), among others.
The airline is boosting capacity on several routes on high-demand corridors by deploying its largest Boeing 777-300 aircraft.
American emphasised that these additional flights are designed “to take care of the airline’s customers and help as many get to and from the region as possible,” following the FAA-mandated closure of the Caribbean.
Delta Air Lines plans a normal schedule with added flights
Delta Air Lines also outlined its Caribbean recovery plans. The airline resumed flights to and from 13 previously affected Caribbean airports and plans to operate its regular Caribbean schedule on January 4, while adjusting specific routings as aircraft and crews are repositioned.
In addition to restoring scheduled flying, Delta said it would operate some flights with larger aircraft and planned three additional flights to and from the region on Sunday as part of its recovery efforts.
The airline also announced it would add more than 2,600 seats through extra flights across its Caribbean network for Monday, January 5. Delta’s customer service teams are working to ensure reaccommodation of all affected customers by Tuesday, January 6.
Delta’s travel waiver remains in place through January 6, providing customers affected by the disruption with flexibility to rebook and make ticket changes.
Other US carriers adjust Caribbean service
Other US airlines have also adjusted their Caribbean service in response to the airspace closure. JetBlue, which had the highest number of cancellations (209 flights) resulting from the airspace disruption, said it would “rebook customers on available flights and, where possible, by adding extra flights.”
United, Spirit, Southwest, and Frontier have also resumed Caribbean service and are adjusting as needed to absorb rebooking demand. United had the fourth-highest number of cancellations among US carriers, with 109 flights disrupted by the airspace closure.
When will Caribbean flights get back to normal?
Though the FAA’s Caribbean airspace restrictions were short-lived, airlines warn that connectivity will take a few days to fully normalise, as crews and aircraft work their way back into position and rebooking demand remains high.
Delta is the only airline so far to have made a specific commitment to reaccommodate all customers and return to regular Caribbean service by January 6.
Caribbean destinations—many of them highly dependent on US tourism—will welcome a return to normal.
Featured image: Thiago Trevisan | stock.adobe.com
