Venezuela restarts limited international flights

Venezuela has authorized the limited resumption of international commercial flights to the Dominican Republic, Panama, Mexico, Iran and Turkey.

The Inac civil aviation authority said in an 11 November directive that only commercial operations to these five countries will be permitted by approved airlines that pass a government biosafety audit.

In line with some other South American countries such as Colombia and Argentina, Venezuela shut down international flights in March as a way to combat the Covid-19 pandemic.

In yesterday's directive, Inac extended a ban on all domestic air travel and international commercial and private flights to other countries until 13 February 2021.

State-owned flag carrier Conviasa is resuming flights this week from Caracas and Maracaibo to the Dominican Republic, Panama and Cancun in Mexico. "Frequencies depend on aircraft and flight crew availability," a Conviasa official said.

Panama's Copa Airlines said yesterday that it will reopen its Caracas office on 16 November after Inac authorized the carrier to operate three weekly flights from Caracas to Panama where travelers will connect with flights to up to 20 countries.

Conviasa's flights to Dominican Republic and Cancun also will provide travelers from Venezuela hubs connecting with flights to Europe and other destinations.

Venezuelan-owned private carrier Aerolineas Estelar plans to resume flights from Caracas to Panama on 20 November after Inac approved its anti-Covid safety protocols that include a negative Covid-19 test done within 72 hours of a flight's departure.

For years before the pandemic hit, Venezuela had limited international flight service because of a dispute with foreign carriers over the repatriation of profits.