SIMPSON BAY, Sint Maarten, January 3, 2026, 10:04 ET
- KLM canceled five Saturday departures and said Curacao-area airspace closures were delaying flights to destinations including Sint Maarten.
- American Airlines issued a travel alert covering St. Maarten (SXM) and other Eastern Caribbean airports, allowing fee-free changes for eligible customers.
- The disruptions followed U.S. strikes on Venezuela that President Donald Trump said ended with President Nicolas Maduro captured and flown out of the country.
Flights to and from Sint Maarten’s Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM) were disrupted on Saturday, with cancellations and delays rippling through key Caribbean routes after U.S. attacks on Venezuela. KLM said it canceled flights KL733, KL735, KL765, KL775 and KL783 and would reassess more services after airspace around Curacao was closed.
The disruption matters now because Sint Maarten is a major gateway for winter tourists and a regional transfer point, with passengers connecting onward to nearby islands and U.S. hubs. Sudden airspace limits can quickly snarl schedules in a part of the Caribbean where many flights are short, tightly timed and depend on a small number of corridors.
Airlines referenced NOTAMs — short for Notices to Air Missions — the aviation alerts used by authorities to warn pilots and operators about hazards or restrictions. When NOTAMs close or constrain routes, carriers often cancel flights outright or reroute aircraft, which can trigger knock-on delays across networks.
American Airlines listed St. Maarten among the destinations covered by an “airspace closure” travel alert, waiving change fees for eligible customers scheduled to travel January 3-4. The carrier said travelers could rebook within set dates without changing their origin or destination. American Airlines
U.S. airlines also moved to adjust schedules. Delta Air Lines said it was making changes in compliance with FAA airspace closures, while JetBlue said it had canceled about 215 flights systemwide due to the restrictions, Axios reported.
Local airport conditions were not the driver. Flight-tracking site FlightStats showed the overall delay status at Sint Maarten’s Princess Juliana International Airport was “very low” on Saturday morning. FlightStats
The wider aviation disruption followed an overnight U.S. operation in Venezuela that Trump said captured Maduro and his wife and moved them out of the country. The United States has not made such a direct intervention in Latin America since the 1989 invasion of Panama, Reuters reported.
Venezuela’s government condemned what it called “military aggression” by the United States and said attacks struck multiple locations, while Maduro declared a national emergency, according to a government statement. Reuters
“The events are a reminder that geopolitical tensions continue to dominate the headlines,” said Marchel Alexandrovich, an economist at Saltmarsh Economics, in comments compiled by Reuters. Reuters
For Sint Maarten, the immediate impact was operational: airline schedules shifted as carriers balanced safety, regulatory limits and aircraft positioning. That can squeeze availability quickly for an island market with limited seats on peak days.
Airlines urged passengers to check flight status before heading to the airport and to use carrier apps and customer-service channels as updates rolled out.
