DOT lifts ban on US-Venezuela flights, American Airlines announces return to the country
American Airlines warned that it will continue monitoring the situation in Venezuela and coordinate with federal authorities before it returns to the country.
Sean Duffy, the Secretary of Transportation of the United States, has signed a document lifting the ban for US-based carriers to fly from/to Venezuela, which had prevented them from operating flights to the country since May 2019. The same day, American Airlines said that it was “ready to resume” flights to Venezuela, “pending government approval and subject to security assessments.”
Ban lifted on flights from/to Venezuela
In an order on January 29, 2026, Duffy, citing the decision made by Donald Trump, the President of the US, who directed the Department of Transportation (DOT) and other stakeholders to “take steps necessary to reopen air service to Venezuela.”
Duffy agreed that there was no public interest in keeping the ban, warning that the DOT’s decision will not affect restrictions that might be in place from other government agencies, including the Department of State (DOS) or the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
The Secretary’s order is effective immediately.
US airlines had been prohibited from flying from/to Venezuela since May 2019. During the first Trump administration, Elaine Chao, the then-Secretary of Transportation, outlined that the DHS had submitted a letter to the DOT, which warned about the security situation in the country.
“[…] conditions in Venezuela threaten the safety and security of passengers, aircraft, and crew traveling to or from that country, and that the public interest requires an immediate suspension of all commercial passenger and cargo flights between the United States and Venezuela.”
American Airlines’ return
The same day, American Airlines issued a statement, which said that it is “the first airline to announce plans to reinstate nonstop service between” the two countries.
However, its return is still pending regulatory approval and security assessments, with the carrier maintaining “close contact with federal authorities.” The airline added that it will share more details in the coming months.
Nat Pieper, the Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) of American Airlines, who joined the airline in November 2025, highlighted the carrier’s 30-year history of connecting the two countries, saying that it will “offer customers the opportunity to reunite with families and create new business and commerce with the United States.”
Cirium’s Diio Mi shows that in 2019, before the ban took effect, American Airlines was the only US-based airline to fly to Venezuela, offering daily flights from Miami International Airport (MIA) to Maracaibo La Chinita International Airport (MAR) and double-daily departures to Caracas Simón Bolívar International Airport (CCS).
Delta Air Lines last flew to CCS in September 2017, while United Airlines’ last regularly scheduled flight to the Venezuelan capital took off from Houston George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH) to CCS on April 3, 2017.
avianca, Copa Airlines, Satena, and Wingo, the low-cost subsidiary of Copa Airlines, have already resumed services to Venezuela following the US military’s actions in the country.
Rytis Beresnevicius
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