The US aviation regulator has suspended flights by US carriers to Haiti for a period of at least 30 days, after three incidents of shooting at planes departing from the Caribbean country within one day were recorded, the BBC reported, as quoted by BTA.
Airplanes of “JetBlue“, “Spirit“ and “American Airlines” were hit by bullets on Monday upon their arrival in the capital Port-au-Prince.
In the attack on the “Spirit“ the flight attendant received minor injuries, but no passengers were injured.
On Tuesday, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued a Notice to Air Missions (Notam) banning flights to Haiti due to “flight safety risks associated with continued security instability”.
US aircraft are currently prohibited from flying less than 10,000 feet (3,048 m) from Haitian territory and airspace.
In addition, the FBI announced that it has joined the investigation into the shooting of the “Spirit” plane.
Rising crime and gang wars have plagued the poorest country in the Americas since the assassination of President Jovenel Moise in 2021. According to the United Nations, more than 3,600 people have been killed in Haiti since January and more than 500,000 have been were forced to leave their homes.
All three affected US airlines have already suspended flights to Haiti ahead of the aviation regulator's decision.