American Airlines wants to become the first U.S.-based carrier to resume flights to Venezuela after President Trump told a cabinet meeting on Thursday that he had ordered airspace restrictions over the South American country to be lifted.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has already removed Venezuela from its list of countries with so-called ‘Flight Prohibitions Notices,’ although, officially, the country is still subject to a ‘Notice to Airmen’ (NOTAM) that bans US airlines flying to, from, or even over its airspace.
Trump orders Venezuela airspace restrictions lifted
During a cabinet meeting on Thursday, President Trump said that he was ordering airspace restrictions over Venezuela to be lifted following a phone call he held with the country’s interim president, Delcy Rodriguez.
“American citizens will very shortly be able to go to Venezuela, and they will be safe there. It’s under very strong control,” Trump said during the meeting.
The White House wants the airspace over Venezuela to be opened by the end of January 29.
The airspace over Venezuela is officially known as the Maiqeta Flight Information Region and covers a massive area spanning 1,204,815 square kilometre which includes the entire country and its territorial waters.
Trump has told Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, as well as the military, to make arrangements for Venezuelan airspace to be reopened as quickly as possible.
American Airlines announces plans to resume Venezuela flights
Within minutes of Trump’s announcement, American Airlines announced that it intended to be the first US-based carrier to resume flights to Venezuela, saying it was ready to restart flights as soon as it got government approval and a security assessment had been carried out.
“We have a more than 30-year history connecting Venezolanos to the U.S., and we are ready to renew that incredible relationship,” commented Nat Pieper, American’s Chief Commercial Officer.
“By restarting service to Venezuela, American will offer customers the opportunity to reunite with families and create new business and commerce with the United States.”
American Airlines first started serving Venezuela in 1987, but operations have been suspended for nearly seven years due to US government restrictions.
While Trump has signalled that he wants Venezuelan airspace to be reopened to US carriers by the end of Thursday, American Airlines suggested it could actually be months before the carrier actually starts operating flights to Caracas.
Venezuela flights have been banned for US airlines since 2019
U.S. airlines have been banned from flying to and from Venezuela since May 2019, following an assessment by the Department of Homeland Security, which concluded that the domestic security situation in the country posed a threat to airlines, their crew, and passengers.
The DHS called for the immediate suspension of both passenger and cargo flights between the United States and Venezuela, and this was swiftly enforced by the Department of Transportation.
Despite this ban, U.S. airlines had, until only recently still been permitted to overfly Venezuela when operating services to other countries.
In November 2025, however, the FAA advised airlines to avoid overflying Venezuela over fears that a civilian airliner could be accidentally shot down by military forces on high alert.
By this point, US airlines had already been voluntarily avoiding Venezuelan airspace as the US military built up its presence in the Caribbean.
On January 3, the FAA published another NOTAM prohibiting overflights of the Maiqeta FIR after an audacious overnight strike by US special forces resulted in the capture and arrest of former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife.
The current NOTAM was due to expire on March 1, 2026.
