The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has barred US airlines from flying to Haiti for the next 30 days after three airliners were hit by gunfire on Monday amidst escalating gang violence in the troubled island territory.
The ban came in the form of a Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM), which prohibits all US air carriers from flying within Haitian airspace at altitudes below 10,000 feet due to what the FAA described as “safety-of-flight risks associated with ongoing security instability.”
On Monday, a flight attendant aboard a Spirit Airlines flight from Fort Lauderdale was injured when several bullets pierced through the fuselage of an Airbus A320 aircraft as it was coming into land at Port-au-Prince Airport in Haiti.
The plane was sprayed with bullets as it made its final approach to Port-au-Prince, prompting an emergency diversion to the neighboring Dominican Republic, where the aircraft had to be taken out of service.
Hours later, it emerged that a JetBlue plane that had departed Port-au-Prince earlier on Monday had also been struck by a bullet, causing damage to the aircraft exterior.
The damage to the JetBlue plane was, however, only discovered during a routine post-flight inspection after the aircraft had landed without incident at New York JFK.
It then emerged that a third plane operated by American Airlines plane on a flight from Port-au-Prince to Miami on Monday had also been struck by a bullet. The crew was not aware of any issues during the flight, and the damage only came to light after the plane had safely landed in Miami.
A spokesperson for the carrier said that a detailed post-flight inspection was ordered out of “an abundance of caution,” which revealed that the exterior of the aircraft had been impacted by a bullet.
“We are working closely with all relevant authorities to investigate this incident,” a statement from the airline continued.
American Airlines has taken the decision to suspend its services to Haiti until February 12, 2025, amidst fears that US airliners were deliberately targeted by heavily armed gangs.
Heavy fighting erupted between gangs and security services throughout Port-au-Prince on Monday as the country prepared to inaugurate a new interim Prime Minister who has promised to end the civil unrest that has plagued Haiti for years.
Gangs now control around 80% of Port-au-Prince, and the city’s Toussaint Louverture International Airport was temporarily shuttered on Monday as gangs attempted to seize control of the airfield.
