Travel alerts: FAA bans flights to once-popular Caribbean travel destination

The Federal Aviation Administration has banned flights to Haiti due to escalating gang violence.

The ban covers the next 30 days and comes after gangs shot at three planes, hitting a Spirit Airlines jet as it was landing in the capital of Port-au-Prince last week, CBS News reported. One flight attendant was injured and the airport was shutdown. The United Nations also temporarily suspended flights to the country.

JetBlue and American Airlines announced its planes had also taken gunfire when they were departing Port-au-Prince last week.

The latest wave of violence came as Haiti swore in a new appointed prime minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé after the ouster of Garry Connille after less than six months in office. According to media reports, some 3,600 people in Haiti have been killed in the unrest in Haiti since January and more than 500,00 have been forced to leave their homes.

U.S. Embassy Alert

Last Monday, the U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince issued a security alert saying it was “aware of gang-led efforts” to block travel to and from the capital, including armed violence causing disruptions to roads, ports and airports.

“The security situation in Haiti is unpredictable and dangerous. Travel within Haiti is conducted at your own risk. The U.S. government cannot guarantee your safety traveling to airports, borders, or during any onward travel. You should consider your personal security situation before traveling anywhere in Haiti. Only attempt to depart Haiti or travel within Haiti if you believe it is safe for you to do so.”

The island nation, once a popular travel destination for cruise ships and Caribbean travelers, remains under the State Department’s highest warning – a level 4 – “do not travel” designation due to ongoing gang violence.

According to the State Department, Haiti has been under a state of emergency since March due to robbery, carjackings, sexual assaults and widespread kidnappings, as well as mob killings and assaults. People are advised not to cross the border between Haiti and the Dominican Republic and the U.S. embassy is not helping people enter the Dominican Republic by land, sea or air.

“The U.S. government is very limited in its ability to help U.S. citizens in Haiti,” the department said. “Local police and other first responders often lack the resources to respond to emergencies or serious crime.”