The United States Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has issued a cautionary notice to major airlines highlighting potential hazards when flying through Venezuelan airspace, citing “heightened military activity” as US forces amass in the region.
In a NOTAM (Notice to Airmen) released on Friday, the FAA pointed to a “worsening security situation and heightened military activity in or around Venezuela.” While the advisory stops short of placing a ban on flights over the country, it urges aircraft operators transiting the area to “exercise caution” due to threats “at all altitudes, including during overflight, the arrival and departure phases of flight, and/or at airports and aircraft on the ground.”
An accompanying background document noted increased global navigation satellite system (GNSS) interference since September within Venezuelan airspace, occasionally resulting in prolonged operational effects throughout flights. These disruptions are linked to “activity associated with increasing Venezuela military readiness.” According to the FAA, Venezuela has conducted several military drills and ordered the large-scale mobilisation of thousands of active-duty and reserve personnel. However, the aviation authority clarified that “Venezuela has at no point expressed an intent to target civil aviation.”
“The FAA will continue to monitor the risk environment for US civil aviation operating in the region and make adjustments, as appropriate,” the notice added.
Although direct passenger and cargo flights between the US and Venezuela were suspended in 2019, several US carriers still utilise Venezuelan airspace en route to other South American destinations, Reuters reported. American Airlines confirmed it halted overflights in October, while Delta Air Lines and United Airlines did not immediately comment.
The advisory comes amid Washington’s deployment of its most advanced aircraft carrier strike group, naval warships carrying thousands of troops, and F-35 stealth fighters as part of what it says is an operation targeting Latin American drug trafficking cartels. Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has warned that the military escalation may serve as a pretext for attempts to unseat him, as the Trump administration intensifies its rhetoric against Caracas, including allegations of involvement in narcotics trafficking.
US military forces are also reportedly engaged in ongoing actions against vessels in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean. Since early September, the US has struck around 20 vessels, causing over 80 fatalities among individuals it labels narcotics traffickers. Legal experts, however, argue that Washington has provided no substantiating evidence linking the targets to criminal activity or any threat to the US, accusing the administration of carrying out extrajudicial killings in international waters.
According to flight tracking service Flightradar24, US operators must now provide 72 hours’ advance notification to the FAA before transiting Venezuelan airspace.
