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FAA flight ban grounds relief, families in Haiti during holiday season

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Published  November 13, 2024 9:51pm EST
Florida
FOX 35 Orlando

FAA flight ban grounds relief, families in Haiti

Hundreds of families expecting loved ones from Haiti for the holidays face disappointment as an FAA ban on all flights in and out of the country has halted travel.

ORLANDO, Fla. - Hundreds of families expecting loved ones from Haiti for the holidays face disappointment as an FAA ban on all flights in and out of the country has halted travel. 

The 30-day restriction, implemented after two planes were shot at, has affected both commercial and private flights, including humanitarian missions.

The restriction has left private aviation companies, such as the nonprofit Agape Flights, grounded. 

"We actually ran a flight down there yesterday," said Gregory Haman, Agape’s Director of Flight Operations. "When the FAA issued the ban, I had a plane still in-country." His team returned safely to Venice, Florida, but future flights remain uncertain.

Agape Flights, which regularly delivers cargo and mail to mission groups in Haiti, has requested a humanitarian waiver to resume operations. 

"Unless we can get a special waiver, we're limited like everyone else for the next 30 days," Haman said.

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The temporary suspension disrupts critical aid and family reunions for the holiday season. 

"I know a lot of people had plans to see family," said Serdwick St. Pierre of Haitians in Orlando. "It’s all up in the air now and likely won’t happen."

The ban follows recent attacks near Port-au-Prince, where at least two planes, including a Spirit Airlines flight from Fort Lauderdale, were struck by gunfire, injuring a flight attendant. Agape typically flies to Cap-Haïtien in northern Haiti, where gang violence is less prevalent, but all U.S. operators remain affected.

In a message posted to X, the U.S. Embassy in Haiti advised travelers with canceled flights to contact airlines and warned that travel within Haiti "should be conducted at your own risk."

Among Agape’s bi-weekly shipments are essential supplies, including medicine. "I have no idea how they’re going to get some of those things," Haman said, noting the urgency for a solution.

The group is awaiting word on their waiver application, but it could be days before they know if they’ll be cleared to resume flights.

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