TAMPA, Fla. — A U.S. directive restricting flights in Venezuelan airspace is causing cancellations affecting operations to Puerto Rico, Aruba, and St. Maarten from Tampa International Airport.
According to Tampa International Airport officials, 12 flights total were canceled Saturday to and from San Juan, that included 6 incoming and 6 outgoing flights. An airport spokesperson also confirmed one incoming flight with JetBlue Airlines was also canceled for Sunday.
WATCH: U.S. flight restrictions over Venezuela disrupt Puerto Rico and Caribbean routes at TPA
Southwest Airlines
A Southwest Airlines spokesperson said the airline is canceling all flights to AUA (Queen Beatrix International Airport in Aruba) and SJU (Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in San Juan, Puerto Rico) for Saturday. For now, scheduled flights to PUJ (Punta Cana International Airport in the eastern Dominican Republic) are not affected.
Jetblue
JetBlue Corporate Communications sent Tampa Bay 28 a statement Saturday, saying:
Due to airspace closures across the Caribbean related to military activity, we have canceled approximately 215 flights systemwide. Flights to the Dominican Republic and Jamaica are not affected by the government’s restrictions. Customers whose flights are cancelled may rebook their travel or request a refund.
We will continue to monitor when the Caribbean airspace will reopen and operations can resume. Customers with travel plans should check their flight status on jetblue.com or the JetBlue app. For customers with upcoming travel, a fee waiver is in place to provide additional flexibility to adjust their travel plans.
Frontier Airlines
Frontier Airlines also sent us a statement Saturday, saying:
We are in receipt of the U.S. government directive temporarily restricting flights within Venezuelan airspace and some broader areas of the Caribbean region. The directive is primarily impacting our Puerto Rico operations and expected to result in a number of flight cancellations to and from Puerto Rico, as well as Aruba and St. Maarten over the next 24 hours. We have initiated a flexible travel policy and customers on impacted flights are being contacted.
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