TAP Air Portugal to Restart Venezuela Flights via Valencia amid Caracas Airport Repairs
Portuguese carrier will initially fly to Valencia as work continues to resume services to capital. TAP Air Portugal will resume flights to Venezuela on 13 July, three weeks after two strong earthquakes struck the country, killing thousands and destroying infrastructure. The Portuguese carrier says it will initially operate to Arturo Michelena International airport in Valencia instead of Caracas's Simon Bolivar airport, which sustained damage during the earthquakes. "At this stage, flights will operate to Arturo Michelena International airport in Valencia, allowing for the gradual re-establishment of air links between Portugal and Venezuela while the necessary work is under way to resume regular operations," says TAP. The Lisbon-based carrier will operate the route as a one-stop service with a technical stop in Pointe-a-Pitre in Guadeloupe. It says no aircraft or crew will remain in Venezuela. The first flight on 13 July will transport 8.7t of medical supplies to assist with humanitarian aid missions. "The company continues to monitor the evolving situation and is committed to resuming its regular operations to Venezuela as quickly as possible and under conditions of complete safety," adds TAP. Venezuela's interim president Delcy Rodriguez said in a 7 July Telegram post that after assessing the damage to one of the runways at the Caracas airport, she had initiated a plan aimed at temporarily allowing commercial flights to use a parallel runway.