In an extraordinary move, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued an emergency Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM) on January 3, 2026, prohibiting all U.S.-operated passenger and cargo aircraft from entering airspace within 100 nautical miles of Venezuela, Puerto Rico and several adjoining Caribbean flight information regions. The order came hours after President Donald Trump confirmed that U.S. forces had carried out precision strikes in Venezuela that led to the capture of President Nicolás Maduro and First Lady Cilia Flores on narco-terrorism charges.
The safety directive triggered an immediate operational scramble. Flight-tracking service FlightAware recorded more than 700 cancellations involving U.S. airports by noon, while Puerto Rico’s Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport canceled nearly half of its day’s departures and arrivals. JetBlue—whose Caribbean network is the largest of any U.S. carrier—scrubbed over 200 flights, and American, Delta, United and Southwest quickly followed with extensive waivers and refund offers. Travel advisors report that many leisure and business passengers are now marooned across Curaçao, Aruba, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico, with some unable to return until later in the week.
Air-traffic experts note that military activity had already raised collision risks in the region. Just last month, a JetBlue pilot departing Curaçao narrowly avoided an un-identifiable U.S. Air Force aircraft that lacked a transponder code. The FAA’s sweeping restriction reflects concern that additional sorties or drone activity could endanger civil aviation lanes that overlap Venezuelan airspace and the northern Caribbean corridor used by U.S.–Europe flights.
![FAA Bans U.S. Flights Near Venezuela After Military Strike, Stranding Hundreds of Travelers]()
For mobility managers, the disruption illustrates how quickly geopolitics can derail carefully planned itineraries. Companies with personnel in the Caribbean should inventory stranded travelers, confirm hotel availability, and activate travel-risk insurance triggers that cover “political violence” or “war-like operations.” Employers should also anticipate knock-on scheduling problems at mainland hubs such as JFK, Newark and Miami, where ground-delay programs are producing waits of 20–90 minutes. Where possible, reroute essential travelers through Central American airports that fall outside the NOTAM’s coordinates.
Should those detours require unexpected visas or transit permits, VisaHQ’s global specialists can quickly determine entry requirements and secure emergency documentation, smoothing the way for rerouted crew and passengers alike. Corporate travel teams can tap real-time updates for more than 200 destinations—including the United States—through https://www.visahq.com/united-states/.
Looking ahead, FAA officials say the ban is ‘temporary’ but could be extended if hostilities flare again. Carriers will need to re-file flight plans once the NOTAM is lifted, and crew schedulers must account for additional fuel and duty-time buffers on detoured routings around Venezuelan FIRs. Travel buyers should monitor the FAA’s NOTAM database and encourage employees to enroll in the State Department’s STEP program for real-time embassy alerts in affected islands.
Ultimately, the episode underscores the value of diversified routing strategies and the importance of crisis-management drills that integrate security, human resources and corporate travel functions. In an age when military flashpoints can materialize overnight, agility—not just policy—keeps global talent moving.
The safety directive triggered an immediate operational scramble. Flight-tracking service FlightAware recorded more than 700 cancellations involving U.S. airports by noon, while Puerto Rico’s Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport canceled nearly half of its day’s departures and arrivals. JetBlue—whose Caribbean network is the largest of any U.S. carrier—scrubbed over 200 flights, and American, Delta, United and Southwest quickly followed with extensive waivers and refund offers. Travel advisors report that many leisure and business passengers are now marooned across Curaçao, Aruba, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico, with some unable to return until later in the week.
Air-traffic experts note that military activity had already raised collision risks in the region. Just last month, a JetBlue pilot departing Curaçao narrowly avoided an un-identifiable U.S. Air Force aircraft that lacked a transponder code. The FAA’s sweeping restriction reflects concern that additional sorties or drone activity could endanger civil aviation lanes that overlap Venezuelan airspace and the northern Caribbean corridor used by U.S.–Europe flights.
For mobility managers, the disruption illustrates how quickly geopolitics can derail carefully planned itineraries. Companies with personnel in the Caribbean should inventory stranded travelers, confirm hotel availability, and activate travel-risk insurance triggers that cover “political violence” or “war-like operations.” Employers should also anticipate knock-on scheduling problems at mainland hubs such as JFK, Newark and Miami, where ground-delay programs are producing waits of 20–90 minutes. Where possible, reroute essential travelers through Central American airports that fall outside the NOTAM’s coordinates.
Should those detours require unexpected visas or transit permits, VisaHQ’s global specialists can quickly determine entry requirements and secure emergency documentation, smoothing the way for rerouted crew and passengers alike. Corporate travel teams can tap real-time updates for more than 200 destinations—including the United States—through https://www.visahq.com/united-states/.
Looking ahead, FAA officials say the ban is ‘temporary’ but could be extended if hostilities flare again. Carriers will need to re-file flight plans once the NOTAM is lifted, and crew schedulers must account for additional fuel and duty-time buffers on detoured routings around Venezuelan FIRs. Travel buyers should monitor the FAA’s NOTAM database and encourage employees to enroll in the State Department’s STEP program for real-time embassy alerts in affected islands.
Ultimately, the episode underscores the value of diversified routing strategies and the importance of crisis-management drills that integrate security, human resources and corporate travel functions. In an age when military flashpoints can materialize overnight, agility—not just policy—keeps global talent moving.
