American Airlines Haiti Flights Return After Nearly 2 Years

American is back in Haiti, the first major U.S. network carrier to return since gunfire hit three airlines’ planes in 2024. The catch: Flights stop at Cap-Haitien, and a U.S. ban still covers Port-au-Prince.

American Airlines resumed Haiti flights Sunday, becoming the first major U.S. network carrier to return since gunfire hit U.S. airliners in 2024, with daily nonstop service from Miami to Cap-Haitien.

The Nov. 1 launch links Miami International Airport (MIA) with Cap-Haitien International Airport (CAP), according to American. The airline describes itself as the first major U.S. network carrier to resume Haiti service. Aviation Week reported that the return follows the 2024 withdrawal of American, JetBlue Airways and Spirit Airlines.

The route restores an American connection for South Florida’s Haitian community after a nearly two-year interruption in the airline’s Haiti service. American’s absence from Cap-Haitien itself lasted more than six years.

The return stops short of the capital. No plan or date for American to resume Port-au-Prince service had been confirmed as of Nov. 3. The State Department still advises against travel to all of Haiti. No independent estimate of the route’s effect on fares, passenger demand or travel times was available.

FAA Ban Still Covers Port-au-Prince

Cap-Haitien International is a separate airport from Toussaint Louverture International Airport in Port-au-Prince, and the difference matters. A Federal Aviation Administration notice that took effect Sept. 1 is scheduled to run until March 2, 2027.

The order bars U.S. airlines and other covered operators from flying between the surface and 9,999 feet above mean sea level across a band of Haiti that includes the capital and runs to the Dominican border. The prohibited area also covers airspace within 17 nautical miles of a point on the band’s northern edge, at 19 degrees 10 minutes north, 72 degrees 31 minutes west. The notice allows specified authorizations and emergency deviations, and operations outside the described areas need no authorization under it.

The FAA’s background assessment says Haitian gangs have attacked at least 11 aircraft in Port-au-Prince and the immediate surrounding areas since February 2024. It reports limited gang presence in areas including Cap-Haitien International and Antoine Simon International Airport in Les Cayes, with no history of aviation targeting in those regions.

State Department Still Warns Against Travel

The FAA notice governs specified flight operations, while the State Department’s advice applies to travelers across Haiti, including those bound for Cap-Haitien.

The department’s July 10 advisory places Haiti at Level 4, its do-not-travel level, citing crime, kidnapping or hostage taking, terrorism, unrest and limited health care. The department says its ability to provide emergency services to U.S. citizens there is extremely limited.

What the New Route Offers

American flies the route with Boeing 737 aircraft. Aviation Week’s analysis of OAG Schedules Analyzer data shows 2,408 two-way scheduled seats for the week beginning Nov. 2. That figure measures capacity, and no independent passenger-load figure was available. Aviation Week said American immediately became the largest carrier at Cap-Haitien.

American says the service offers more than 90 connections across the United States through Miami. Its June announcement named New York City and Orlando among the markets with one-stop access via Miami.

Le Nouvelliste identified the first departure as American Airlines Flight 2492, and Flightradar24 recorded the flight as landed. The tracking service logged a Boeing 737-800 on the trip, although an AeroRoutes schedule report in June had shown a 737 MAX 8.

All-Haitian Crew Led Inaugural Flight

American and Miami International Airport say Capt. Oliver Jean led the first flight with an all-Haitian, Creole-speaking flight crew. The airport’s caption identifies Jean and Yverick Delerme Cyril, Haiti’s consul general in Miami, among those who cut the ribbon at the Miami ceremony. The Miami Herald reported that Cyril said Haiti’s government was working on its security crisis so international commercial flights could return to the capital’s main airport.

“The connection between the United States and Haiti is incredibly meaningful, which is especially true in South Florida,” Juan Carlos Liscano, American Airlines senior vice president of Miami International Airport operations, said in the airport’s Nov. 2 release.

José A. Freig, American Airlines vice president of international operations, cited the carrier’s “unmatched footprint in the region” in discussing the airline’s 100-destination milestone.

HaitiLibre reported that Joseph Almathe Pierre Louis, Haiti’s minister of public works, transport and communications, announced the return Nov. 1 and described its human and economic significance. Those remarks had not been independently confirmed as of Nov. 3.

Passenger Jimmy Louis, 70, told the Miami Herald: “I missed Haiti, I missed my country.” No independent expert comment on the route had been located as of Nov. 3. New route-specific statements from JetBlue, Spirit or a crew union also could not be confirmed. Spirit stopped flying May 2 and is being liquidated, the AP reported.

How Gunfire Halted Service in 2024

On Nov. 11, 2024, gunfire hit a Spirit flight approaching Port-au-Prince from Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The Associated Press reported, citing the airline and other evidence, that a flight attendant suffered minor injuries and the plane diverted to the Dominican Republic.

JetBlue and American later said postflight inspections found gunfire damage on aircraft that had left Port-au-Prince that day, the AP reported. Spirit, JetBlue and American announced cancellations, and the FAA imposed an initial 30-day restriction Nov. 12.

Nine days later, Reuters reported that the FAA had allowed flights to Port-de-Paix, Cap-Haitien, Pignon, Jeremie, Antoine-Simon and Jacmel. American announced its return in June 2026, and Reuters reported the plan June 12.

Other Flights and American’s Miami Growth

Reuters reported in June that Haiti was then the only Caribbean nation without direct flights operated by U.S. carriers. That wider comparison was not independently confirmed for the eve of the launch.

Haitian carrier Sunrise Airways advertises direct service between Fort Lauderdale and Cap-Haitien. Its destinations page also lists Miami and Boston. Its notice to customers says Newark operations were to end Oct. 25, with direct Cap-Haitien-New York service moving to John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) in winter 2026. The notice gives no first JFK flight date, and Sunrise says the change is part of its commitment to strengthening and ensuring the continuity of its operations.

American says it began serving Haiti in 1971 and counts Cap-Haitien as its 100th destination in its Caribbean and Latin America network. American and the airport report more than 410 peak daily departures from American’s Miami hub, serving more than 170 destinations and 46 countries.

American says its winter 2026-27 Miami schedule will be its largest to date, with more flights on routes including San Juan, St. Thomas, Antigua, Tortola and Rio de Janeiro. Its June announcement scheduled three daily Miami-Exuma flights and two daily Miami-St. Kitts flights from Dec. 17, 2026, to April 5, 2027.