FAA warns airlines about flying over Venezuela: 'Potentially hazardous situation'

The Federal Aviation Administration warned airlines astir flying implicit Venezuela arsenic it issued a announcement urging them to "exercise caution" owed to the "potentially hazardous situation" successful the region. 

The advisory comes arsenic the U.S. has importantly accrued its subject beingness crossed the Caribbean nether U.S. Southern Command, deploying bombers, warships and Marines arsenic portion of an expanded run targeting drug-trafficking and alleged "narco-terrorist" networks operating adjacent Venezuela. 

"Operators are advised to workout caution erstwhile operating successful the Maiquetia formation accusation portion astatine each altitudes owed to the worsening information concern and heightened subject enactment successful oregon astir Venezuela," the FAA advisory said. 

"Threats could airs a imaginable hazard to craft astatine each altitudes, including during overflight, the accomplishment and departure phases of flight, and/or airports and craft connected the ground," it added, requesting airlines to supply astatine slightest 72-hour beforehand announcement to the FAA if they program to alert done the area.

US NAVY DESTROYER ARRIVES IN TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO AS TRUMP TURNS SCREWS ON VENEZUELA 

Members of Venezuela's Bolivarian National Guard basal successful enactment arsenic they transportation retired an accrued information patrol on Lake Maracaibo amid rising tensions betwixt Venezuela and the U.S., successful Maracaibo, Venezuela, connected Oct. 26, 2025.  (Isaac Urrutia/Reuters)

Direct flights from U.S. rider and cargo carriers to Venezuela person been suspended since 2019, but immoderate airlines inactive alert implicit the state connected their South American routes, according to Reuters. 

It added that American Airlines said Friday it stopped flying implicit Venezuela successful October, portion Delta Air Lines said it stopped "a portion ago." 

HEGSETH ANNOUNCES OPERATION TO REMOVE ‘NARCO-TERRORISTS FROM OUR HEMISPHERE’

A seashore defender vessel of the Venezuelan Navy operates disconnected the Caribbean seashore connected Sept. 11, 2025.  (Juan Carlos Hernandez/Reuters)

"Since September 2025, determination has been an summation successful Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) interference successful the Maiquetia Flight Information Region (SVZM FIR), arsenic good arsenic enactment associated with expanding Venezuela subject readiness," the FAA besides said.

"Some civilian craft precocious reported GNSS interference portion transiting the SVZM FIR, which, successful immoderate cases, caused lingering effects passim the flight. GNSS jammers and spoofers tin impact craft retired to 250 nautical miles and tin interaction a wide assortment of captious communication, navigation, surveillance, and information instrumentality connected aircraft," the FAA continued.

The USS Gravely, a U.S. Navy warship, departs Port of Spain connected Oct. 30, 2025. The warship arrived successful Trinidad and Tobago connected Oct. 26, 2025, for associated exercises adjacent the seashore of Venezuela, arsenic Washington ratcheted up unit connected cause traffickers and Venezuelan person Nicolás Maduro.  (Martin Bernetti/AFP via Getty Images)

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP  

"Additionally, since aboriginal September, Venezuela has conducted aggregate subject exercises and directed the wide mobilization of thousands of subject and reserve forces. While Venezuela has astatine nary constituent expressed an intent to people civilian aviation, the Venezuelan subject possesses precocious combatant craft and aggregate weapons systems susceptible of reaching oregon exceeding civilian craft operating altitudes, arsenic good arsenic imaginable low-altitude hazard from man-portable aerial defence systems and anti-aircraft artillery," it besides warned. 

Fox News Digital’s Morgan Phillips contributed to this report.