A Spirit airline plane shot yesterday by Haitian criminal gangs during its approach to the Toussaint Louverture International Airportin Haiti, had to make an emergency landing at the Cibao International Airport (AIC).
None of the 48 passengers were injured but an attendant on flight 951 suffered minor injuries during the incident and is being evaluated by medical personnel, the US airline explained in a statement.
The Cibaeña air terminal confirmed that the aircraft from Fort Lauderdale bound for Port-au-Prince Airport landed without problems at 12:33 noon, despite the plane having suffered damage when it was hit by gunshots. The affected aircraft is out of service, but the company was organizing a trip on a different plane to Fort Lauderdale, in the state of Florida, United States.
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According to a statement, Spirit yesterday ordered the suspension of its services to Haiti after one of its aircraft was hit by gunfire, causing damage to the fuselage and “minor injuries” to a flight attendant.
“The safety of our passengers and team members is our top priority and we have suspended our service in Port-au-Prince (PAP) and Cap-Haïtien (CAP) pending further evaluation,” the statement concluded.
The attack on the aircraft highlights once again the level of insecurity that shakes Haitian territory by the armed gangs that have taken over that nation, leaving nearly 1,223 people dead and 500 injured between the months of July and September. of this year.
According to reports, following yesterday’s event, Haitian authorities suspended scheduled airline flights. JetBlue, American Airlines, Air Caraibes and Amerijet Cargoamong others.
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For the president of the Association of Merchants and Industrialists of Santiago (ACIS), Sandy Filpothe attack must be repudiated because it put the lives of the people who were on the aircraft at risk and also created insecurity in aviation. “Now everyone who travels by air to Haiti will be afraid that at any given moment they could be attacked and that further complicates the situation in Haiti in terms of personal security for those who visit that country,” he stated.
“This could have caused a tragedy involving people who are not part of the Haitian state, who are not Haitian nationals, some are visitors and others move for work and business reasons and that creates insecurity and no one will want to go to Haiti because at any time life may be at stake,” he added.
The business leader said that in addition to the investigation, the Haitian authorities must suspend all aerial activities until the full weight of the law is investigated and brought to bear on those responsible for the act of vandalism.
Sandy Filpo asked the international community to sanction this action that he defined as vandalism and for countries to unite in order to find a solution to the problem that puts the neighboring country’s airspace at risk.
