Cristian Hernandez / Lusa
Nicolás Maduro, President of Venezuela
Four US officials confessed anonymously to Reuters that, for the new phase of operations related to Venezuela scheduled for the next few days, the US is considering overthrowing Nicolás Maduro.
TAP canceled TP170 flights this Saturday and next Tuesday to Venezuela, following information from United States aviation authorities about the security situation in the country’s airspace, the company said.
The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued a warning to commercial flight operators advising them to “exercise extreme caution” when flying over Venezuela and the southern Caribbean, due to what it considers “a potentially dangerous situation in the region”.
Four US officials confessed anonymously that, for the new phase of operations related to Venezuela scheduled for the next few days, the US is considering overthrow Nicolás Maduro.
In a note sent to the Lusa agency, TAP explains that the decision “results from information issued by the aeronautical authorities of the United States of America, which indicates safety conditions are not guaranteed in Venezuelan airspace, namely in the Maquetia flight information zone”.
He adds that “all passengers have been informed of the cancellation and that they can, if they wish, proceed with a refund request”, regretting “the inconvenience caused” by a decision that “aims to guarantee the safety of passengers and crew”.
Beyond TAP five other airlines canceled its flights to Venezuela, after the United States alerted civil aviation to a “increased military activity” as part of the deployment of US forces to the Caribbean, the president of the Association of Airlines of Venezuela (ALAV), Marisela de Loaiza, told the France-Presse news agency.
The group that canceled air operations to the country led by Nicolas Maduro includes, in addition to TAP, the Spanish company IberiaColombian Aviancathe Brazilian GOL of each other Latamas well as the Caribbean Airlines of Trinidad and Tobago, he said.
“Potentially dangerous situation”
The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued a warning to commercial flight operators advising them to “exercise extreme caution” when flying over Venezuela and the southern Caribbean, due to what it considers “a potentially dangerous situation in the region”.
“Operators are recommended to exercise extreme caution when operating in the Maiquetía flight information region [correspondente ao espaço aéreo controlado pela Venezuela, que inclui também parte das Caraíbas sul e oriental] at all altitudes, due to the deterioration of the security situation and the increase in military activity in Venezuela or its surroundings”, says the FAA in the statement.
“The threats could pose a potential risk to aircraft at all altitudes, including during overflight, arrival and departure phases of the flight”, he adds, considering that airports and aircraft on the ground in that region are also at risk.
Since August, Washington has maintained an important military presence in the area, notably half a dozen warships, officially to combat drug trafficking bound for the United States.
In recent weeks, the United States has carried out around 20 air strikes nthe Caribbean and the Pacific against vessels they accuse – without providing evidence – of transporting drugs, causing a total of 76 victims.
Venezuela accuses Washington of using the pretext of drug trafficking “to impose a change of regime” in Caracas and seize its oil.
