Maps show the scale of the Caribbean air travel chaos — and how airlines are adding extra flights to rescue passengers
Massimo Insabato/Archivio Massimo Insabato/Mondadori Portfolio via Getty Images
- The US raid on Venezuela caused huge travel disruption in the Caribbean.
- Airlines are adding dozens of extra flights to help passengers get to their destinations.
- Two maps show the scale of flight cancellations and the additional recovery flights.
Almost 1,000 flights to and from the Caribbean were canceled on Saturday after the US raid on Venezuela.
The Federal Aviation Administration banned commercial aircraft from flying over Venezuelan airspace before expanding restrictions to much of the Caribbean.
Puerto Rico was the most affected, with 400 flights canceled to or from the main airport in San Juan.
There were also over 140 cancellations in the US Virgin Islands, and 91 in Aruba, which is only about 20 miles off the Venezuelan coast.
Using data from FlightAware, Business Insider put together this map to show the scale of the disruption. You can hover over an icon to see the number of cancellations at the airport.
After airspace restrictions ended early Sunday, airlines added dozens of extra flights to help passengers get where they needed to go.
The region is a particularly popular destination for vacationers seeking some winter sun over the New Year holiday.
American Airlines added 43 extra flights on Sunday and Monday, with room for 7,000 passengers.
For the first time in over a decade, it operated interisland flights in the eastern Caribbean on Monday. Namely, to Puerto Rico from Anguilla and the British Virgin Islands.
American's expanded schedule included deploying a Boeing 777-300, the largest model in its fleet, to ferry passengers between Miami and Puerto Rico.
United Airlines listed 17 additional flights scheduled for Sunday and Monday, to and from its hubs in Houston, Newark, and Washington, DC.
Delta Air Lines said that it has added space for 2,600 people on Monday. It didn't immediately provide details of the extra flights it has scheduled.
A spokesperson for Southwest Airlines told Business Insider that it has added 21 round-trip flights to Aruba and Puerto Rico between Sunday and Wednesday.
Airlines have waived change fees and fare differences for passengers flying to or from the Caribbean, to rebook for flights later in the month.
Have you been affected by the travel disruption in the Caribbean? Reach out to this reporter at psyme@businessinsider.com or via Signal at syme.99
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