American Airlines Returns to Haiti With AA2492 to Cap-Haïtien, While the FAA Keeps Port-au-Prince Off Limits

American Airlines flight AA2492 left Miami for Cap-Haïtien on Sunday, November 1, 2026, the airline’s first service to Haiti since it pulled out in late 2024. The daily route does not reach Port-au-Prince, where an FAA prohibition runs until March 2, 2027.

Le Nouvelliste reported the departure that morning. FlightAware tracking shows the jet leaving the gate at 10:45 a.m. EST, against a 10:20 a.m. schedule, and taking off at 11:12 a.m. It estimated arrival at 12:38 p.m., and no landing had posted when this story was filed.

The first flight was a Boeing 737-800, N957NN, according to FlightStats. American’s announcement said only “Boeing 737,” while schedules listed by AeroRoutes showed a 737 MAX 8, the type FlightAware lists for Monday’s flight.

American spokesperson Laura Masvidal told The Haitian Times the airline was “thrilled” to resume Haiti service and planned events at both airports. WSVN reported before departure that the flight would carry an all-Haitian crew.

At the gate, passenger Mynita Morency told WPLG, “I don’t scare. That’s my country.” Another traveler, Daniel Moise, told the station, “It’s so difficult to travel there.”

What the FAA Notice Actually Bans

The restriction is NOTAM KICZ A0046/26, in force from September 1, 2026, until 05:00 UTC on March 2, 2027. It bars US air carriers, commercial operators and most US-registered aircraft from flying below 10,000 feet in the areas it names.

Those areas are set by coordinates, not by city: a band from 18°20′N to 19°10′N, running from the Dominican border to 73°W, plus a 17-nautical-mile circle around 19°10′N, 72°31′W. Port-au-Prince sits inside the band, while Cap-Haïtien’s airport lies about 22 nautical miles (25 miles, 40 km) beyond the nearest edge, by AeroCorner’s calculation from those coordinates.

The notice says operations elsewhere in Haiti, and overflights above 10,000 feet, need no FAA authorization. That is the legal room American is using.

The FAA’s background notice explains the line. It says gangs have attacked at least 11 aircraft in and around Port-au-Prince since February 2024, and have access to drones and small arms able to hit aircraft below 10,000 feet.

Elsewhere, including at Cap-Haïtien, the FAA describes a limited gang presence and no history of targeting aviation or airports. The zone has also grown: the Miami Herald reported in March 2026 that the FAA had widened it to parts of southern and central Haiti and the Artibonite region.

Nearly Two Years Out of Haiti, More Than Six Off This Route

American’s gap from Haiti and its gap from this route are different numbers. It launched Miami to Cap-Haïtien on October 2, 2014, and Miami International Airport says it last flew there in early 2020, years before the gunfire.

Its exit from Haiti came later. One of its planes was hit by gunfire in Port-au-Prince on November 11, 2024, and American suspended that route for 90 days, Le Nouvelliste reported, before halting it indefinitely that December.

So the absence runs just short of two years, and this is not the FAA reopening Haiti. The notice in force sets no limit on Cap-Haïtien, and the Port-au-Prince prohibition has not been lifted.

American’s June announcement makes the commercial case: it calls Haiti the largest Caribbean country by demand unserved by a US carrier. It also points to South Florida’s Haitian American population, the largest in the country, and to one-stop connections from New York and Orlando.

What Travelers Should Know

Cap-Haïtien is about 80 miles (130 km) north of Port-au-Prince in a straight line, and the capital lies inside the restricted band. The American statements reviewed for this story give no date for a return to the capital.

A June AeroXplorer report of a Port-au-Prince restart in late 2026 does not match the ch-aviation story it cites, which describes the Cap-Haïtien service, or the FAA notice now in force.

Fares vary widely. The Haitian Times found round trips for November 1 to 8 at about $650 to $1,433 on American and about $730 to $1,264 on Sunrise Airways, the Haitian carrier already on the route.

The FAA’s view of the airport is not a travel clearance. The US Embassy in Haiti still shows a Level 4 “Do Not Travel” advisory for the whole country, citing crime, kidnapping, terrorism, unrest and limited health care.

The next date to watch is March 2, 2027, when the notice expires unless the FAA renews it. It has been renewed repeatedly since the first ban in November 2024, the Herald reported.