Panama Airlines Halt Flights To Venezuela

Two Panamanian airlines said Wednesday they would suspend flights to Venezuela for two days, joining several other carriers as the United States cranks up military pressure on the country.

Copa Airlines and its low-cost subsidiary Wingo said they would halt flights to and from Caracas on Thursday and Friday after their pilots reported intermittent interruptions in navigation signals.

The suspension was a “precautionary decision”, the airlines said, pledging to provide more information within 24 hours.

Since August, the United States has deployed warships near Venezuela in the name of combating drug trafficking.

President Donald Trump has accused his counterpart, Nicolas Maduro, of leading a drug cartel, a claim Venezuela denies.

Caracas counters that Washington’s real objective is to overthrow Maduro and seize control of the country’s oil.

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Trump further escalated his threats Saturday, warning that Venezuelan airspace should be considered “closed.”

US aviation authorities last week urged civilian aircraft to “exercise caution” in Venezuelan airspace due to the “worsening security situation and heightened military activity in or around” the country.

That prompted several carriers to suspend operations there, including Spain’s Iberia and Air Europa, Portugal’s TAP, Colombia’s Avianca, Brazil’s GOL, Chile’s Latam, and Turkish Airlines.

Venezuela later revoked some of the companies’ rights to operate in the country, saying they had caved to US “state terrorism.”

AFP