Caribbean Sky Reopens as Airlines Scramble to Clear Backlog After Venezuela Operation

The turquoise waters of the Caribbean are seeing silver wings once again as international airspace begins to reopen following the dramatic U.S. military operation in Venezuela. After a weekend of unprecedented chaos that saw over 400 flights canceled and thousands of travelers stranded, major carriers are deploying "rescue flights" to reunite families and clear the holiday travel backlog.

A Weekend of Turbulence

The disruption began in the early hours of Saturday, January 3, when the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued an emergency "Notice to Air Missions" (NOTAM). The order prohibited U.S.-registered aircraft from operating within the Maiquetía Flight Information Region and large swaths of the Eastern Caribbean.

The security measure followed precision strikes in Caracas and the capture of President Nicolás Maduro. For safety, the FAA effectively "walled off" the southern Caribbean corridor, hitting holiday hotspots like Aruba, Curaçao, and Puerto Rico the hardest.

Stranded in Paradise

At Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in San Juan, nearly 60% of scheduled flights were wiped out on Saturday alone. Travelers reported a scene of "polite panic" as hotels reached capacity and airline apps struggled to process thousands of simultaneous rebooking requests.

"We woke up to a text saying our flight home was gone," said Elena Rodriguez, a tourist stranded in Aruba. "The island is beautiful, but when the planes stop flying just 15 miles from a military zone, you start looking at the horizon differently."

The Recovery Effort

As of Sunday night, U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy confirmed that the primary flight prohibitions have expired, replaced by advisory notices urging caution. Airlines have entered an aggressive "recovery mode":

• American Airlines has added nearly 5,000 additional seats to its Caribbean routes, deploying its largest wide-body aircraft—including the Boeing 777-300ER—to move high volumes of passengers.

• JetBlue, which operates the largest network in the region, resumed normal operations late Sunday but continues to warn of "patchy" schedules as crews and aircraft are repositioned.

• Southwest Airlines added 14 extra round-trip flights between Monday and Tuesday specifically to service Puerto Rico and Aruba.

Lingering Impacts

While the skies are clearing, the cruise industry continues to feel the ripple effects. Ports in Barbados and St. Maarten saw significant delays as ships waited for "fly-cruise" passengers whose arrivals were delayed by the airspace closure. P&O Cruises reported reorganizing travel for approximately 5,000 guests after charter flights from the UK were forced to make mid-Atlantic U-turns on Saturday.

Aviation experts suggest that while flight paths are open, the "geopolitical shadow" over the region remains. With a 15,000-strong U.S. military presence remaining in the Caribbean for a "quarantine" of Venezuelan waters, travelers are advised to maintain flexible plans and monitor carrier updates closely.