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The global airline association described the situation caused by the cancellation of flights to Venezuela as “delicate” following the precautionary warnings issued for flying over its airspace.
According to the agency EFE, the regional vice president of the organization, Peter Cerdá, stated at a press conference in San Salvador that the priority is to maintain an open dialogue with the authorities and the airlines to make the best decisions.
"It's a delicate situation where we are very involved in trying to ensure that there is dialogue and transparency in order to make the best decisions as a sector,” Cerdá stated when asked about the topic."
The representative warned that the impact on Venezuela is significant, as the country has been left without operations from foreign airlines due to cancellations and was already experiencing a loss of connectivity both regionally and globally.
Cerdá explained that the lack of flights affects both family ties and economic relationships, especially due to the large number of Venezuelans residing in other countries in the region and in Europe.
According to the data cited by EFE, in Spain, four routes have been canceled that were transporting around six thousand passengers per week, in Panama about two thousand two hundred, and in Colombia nearly one thousand five hundred, right as the airline industry enters its peak season due to the year-end celebrations.
The leader emphasized that each airline independently analyzes the situation, following its own safety protocols and risk assessment.
In recent weeks, Venezuela has lost nearly two-thirds of its international flight frequencies following the warning issued by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) of the United States regarding the risks of flying over Venezuelan airspace and the southern Caribbean.
The measure comes amid rising tensions between Washington and Caracas, following the U.S. naval and air deployment in the region, which President Donald Trump defended as part of his fight against drug trafficking, while Nicolás Maduro described it as an attempt at political pressure.
The air crisis facing Venezuela has forced thousands of people to redesign their exit routes amid an escalating threat of armed conflict with the United States.
Without available international flights, travelers must complete a complex internal circuit, which combines road trips and local flights to airports near the border.
The state of Táchira, in the west of the country, has become one of the main transit points to Colombia. One of these travelers is José Castro, who shared his journey from the state of Nueva Esparta with the agency EFE.
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