General Discussion

The tensions between the United States and Venezuela are increasingly affecting the Dutch islands in the Caribbean. Over the weekend, there were two serious near-collisions in Curaçao airspace between civil aircraft and what is believed to be American military planes, NOS reports based on audio recordings from air traffic control. The incidents occurred on Friday and Saturday. Both involved a military tanker.

“I don’t know how we didn’t get a collision warning, because they were really close,” one clearly frightened pilot said to air traffic control after Saturday’s incident. “We were climbing straight towards that other aircraft.” Air traffic control intervened with immediate course corrections, instructing the plane to turn away and fly towards an avigation point to create distance. Air traffic control also warned of another plane only 8 miles away.