Capt. Ric Wilson waved the Venezuelan flag with the eight stars from the captain’s side window of a commercial Embraer E175 on Thursday morning at Miami International Airport.
Some Venezuelans in South Florida avoid displaying that flag. Instead, they fly the 7-starred flag that Francisco de Miranda, a Venezuelan revolutionary who fought for independence from Spain, introduced in 1811.
The detail didn’t mean much to Barbara Font, a Venezuelan who lives in Florida. She was excited about how much more often she plans to visit her family. Before Flight AA 3599 on Thursday, she used to have a day-journey, followed by a layover in Panama.
“It’s going to be a lot easier, because we don’t have to make connections,” Font said while getting ready to board Flight AA 3599. “So, having this opportunity, it’s really amazing.
American Airlines first began service to Caracas in 1987, after an oil price collapse severely crippled Venezuela’s economy. Chávez took over Venezuela in 1999, and to the outrage of the opposition, he released his 8-starred flag in 2006.
After Chávez died on March 5, 2013, Nicolás Maduro succeeded him. The instability that followed prompted the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to suspend all U.S.-Venezuela flights in May 2019.
In January, President Donald Trump ordered U.S. forces to capture Maduro, the U.S. Department of Transportation lifted the 2019 ban, and American Airlines announced plans to become “the first airline to reconnect Venezuela with the United States.”
Jarrod Agen, the executive director of the White House National Energy Dominance Council, celebrated the changes that followed the transition with Delcy Rodríguez, the first woman to hold the position of interim President of Venezuela.
“We have had a lot of progress with oil and gas deals and mining deals, and this opens it up, and things are going to move even faster,” Agen said before boarding Flight AA 3599, the first commercial passenger flight from the U.S. to Venezuela in nearly seven years, with Wilson, the vice president of flight operations for Envoy Air, a Texas-based American Airlines subsidiary.
“President Trump is a man of action, and what you’re seeing today is action taking place,” Agen said after disembarking.
Envoy Air operated the twin-engine regional jet’s inaugural direct flight from Miami International Airport in Miami-Dade County, or MIA, to Simón Bolívar International Airport in Maiquetía, or CCS.
“This is the first of many expanded connections between the United States and Venezuela, as Venezuela looks to reclaim its position as a regional economic and energy powerhouse,” said John Barrett, the chargé d’affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Caracas.
Barrett, a veteran diplomat, was among the passengers aboard Flight AA 3599 who experienced the water cannon salutes at both airports.
AA decorated the jet with an America250 commemorative logo. At MIA, passengers were welcomed with small Venezuelan 8-star flags, Venezuelan “tequeños” by Panna, arepas from Gilbert’s, live music, and balloons at the gate.
“There is a lot of hope,” Alejandra Montesinos, a passenger, said at MIA. “We have a lot of hope as Venezuelans.”
Flight AA 3599’s gate departure was at 10:11 a.m., the takeoff was at 10:26 a.m., the landing was at 1:15 p.m., and the gate arrival was at 1:22 p.m., according to Flight Aware. The non-stop flight’s travel time was 3 hours and 11 minutes.
“Caracas is the shortest air distance from any city in the East Coast of North America to South America,” said Félix Plasencia, who was appointed under Rodríguez as Venezuela’s diplomatic representative to the U.S.
On March 19, the U.S. State Department issued a Travel Advisory on Venezuela as a Level 3 Reconsider Travel. The advisory also warned that some areas, including the Colombian border, are at a Level 4 Do Not Travel “due to risk of crime, kidnapping, terrorism, and poor health infrastructure.”
Despite this, the demand for Flight AA 3599 tickets was high. The twin-jet had a capacity for under 100 people. Ticket prices climbed well over $1,000. There was a returning CCS-Miami flight on Thursday, and travel experts expect American Airlines to add a second MIA-CCS flight later in May.
This will mean more family reunions for Font, Montesinos, and other Venezuelans who live in the U.S. but still have relatives living in Venezuela.
Weddle reported from Caracas. Milberg, Kelly, and Torres reported from Miami-Dade.
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