American Restores Air Link Between U.S. and Venezuela

The DOT recently canceled an order prohibiting all passenger and cargo flights between the two countries.

Zach Vasile

Thursday, April 30, 2026 at 12:20 PM ET

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Edited By:

Ryan Ewing

An American Eagle E175. (Photo: Shutterstock | Austin Deppe)

Key Takeaways:

The first nonstop passenger flight between the U.S. and Venezuela in seven years has resumed, with daily service operated by American Airlines subsidiary Envoy Air from Miami to Caracas.
This return follows the U.S. Department of Transportation lifting a 2019 flight ban, a decision made after the ouster of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and subsequent normalization of relations.
American Airlines, a major carrier with strong regional networks, was the first U.S. airline approved to restart service to Venezuela and is also planning future flights to Maracaibo.

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The first nonstop passenger flight between the U.S. and Venezuela in seven years departed Miami International Airport Thursday morning.

The flight, operated by American Airlines subsidiary Envoy Air, is expected to land in Caracas around 1:36 p.m. local time. The service will operate daily going forward.

American showed off the Embraer E175 regional jet scheduled to launch the route at an event in Fort Worth, Texas, on Wednesday. The aircraft bears a special livery celebrating the 250th anniversary of the founding of the U.S.

American was the first U.S. airline to announce a return to Venezuela after the Department of Transportation lifted a 2019 ban on all passenger and cargo traffic between the two countries. The reversal followed the January ouster of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, who is now in custody in New York and facing drug trafficking charges.

Relations between the two countries have somewhat normalized since, and regulators approved American’s planned service to Caracas in early March.

The carrier is also preparing for flights to Maracaibo, in western Venezuela, though no start date for that route has been announced.

American has the strongest Caribbean and South American network of any U.S. airline, and was seen as a likely candidate to kick off the return of U.S. carriers to Venezuela.