American Airlines abandons plans to return to Haiti as violence rocks capital

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American Airlines is no longer resuming its daily service out of Miami into Port-au-Prince’s Toussaint Louverture International Airport as of early February.

A spokesperson for the U.S.-based carrier told the Miami Herald that it will evaluate a possible resumption in late 2025 of the only daily service out of Miami International Airport into Haiti by a major U.S. airline.

“American has made the difficult decision to suspend daily service between Miami (MIA) and Port-au-Prince, Haiti (PAP),” the spokesperson said. “We are proud of our more than 50-year-commitment to Haiti and we will continue to monitor the situation, assessing safety, security, and customer demand, in evaluating a return of service. We will proactively reach out to impacted customers to offer a full refund of their travel itinerary.”

On Sunday, police and human rights advocates were dealing with a new killing spree after reports surfaced that a gang leader had massacred dozens of people the day before in the Wharf Jeremie neighborhood of the capital.

American Airlines, along with JetBlue Airways and Spirit Airlines, all announced last month that they were suspending their daily flights into Haiti after each confirmed they had an aircraft hit by gang gunfire on Nov. 11 over the air space in Port-au-Prince. Spirit Airlines, which was approaching Toussaint Louverture International Airport with passengers when the bullets struck, also suspended its service between Fort Lauderdale and Cap-Haïtien in the north of the country.

No passengers were injured, however, a flight attendant did receive minor injuries.

The suspension, the airline said, was “pending further evaluation.” Neither Spirit nor JetBlue Airways has said if and when they will resume Haiti flights. JetBlue Airways operates flights both out of Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport and John F. Kennedy International Airport into Port-au-Prince.

“We will continue to monitor the situation and evaluate a return of service for late 2025,” the American Airlines spokesperson told the Herald.

After the attack, the Federal Aviation Administration issued a 30-day ban prohibiting all U.S. licensed and U.S. carriers from traveling to Haiti. The ban is supposed to end this week, though it is unclear if it will be extended.

In response to the gang attack, the Haitian government had closed both the international and domestic airports in Port-au-Prince prior to the FAA’s ban. They remain closed though sources say the government is considering a possible reopening as early as this week.

The ban on U.S. commercial and cargo flights has created a huge headache for Haitians. The roads in and out of the capital are controlled by armed gangs, and days of torrential rain last week also buried two major roads connecting Cap-Haïtien and the capital under mudslides. Those making it out of the capital have either had to beg for a ride on a government leased helicopter meant for the purpose of moving security forces to hot zones, or pay $2,500 for a ride on a privately leased helicopter with a 20 lb backpack limit.

After initially placing all of Haiti’s airports under the ban, the FAA later amended its decision to exclude airports outside of the capital. This included the only other airport that can receive commercial international flights, Hugo Chavez International Airport in the northern city of Cap-Haïtien. Today, the small airport serves as the only air bridge in and out of country, with the airspace between the the country and Dominican Republic still closed and the Bahamas suspending its flight service into the country. The only direct service to the U.S. currently is via Haiti-owned Sunrise Airways.

Despite that, it has not stopped the United States from deporting Haitians back to the country. Last week, the Department of Homeland Security flew 70 deportees into Cap-Haïtien despite days of heavy rains that had left the city flooded and all access out of the city to other parts of Haiti blocked.

This is the second instance this year in which armed gang violence has forced the closure of Haiti’s main international airport. In early March, after gangs led coordinated attacks in an attempt to bring down the government, the airport and seaport were closed for two months.

The airport was eventually reopened with the assistance of the U.S. government, which assisted efforts to bulldoze homes on the airport’s perimeter and also flew in material for the construction of a base to house the Kenya-led Multinational Security Support mission to restore airlines’ and passenger’s confidence.

This time, the shutdown and attacks occurred while foreign troops were present in the country.

Over the years, Haiti’s armed gang violence has led to a reduction of commercial carriers flying to the country, as well as daily service. American used to offer several daily flights out of Miami, as well as service from Fort Lauderdale and New York. It also flew into Cap-Haïtien before reducing its service to just one flight a day using a 737 Max.

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