A Spirit Airlines plane was hit by gunfire over the capital of Haiti

()— A Spirit Airlines plane was hit by gunfire this Monday over the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince, according to a diplomatic source in the country. The extent of the damage is still unclear.

The country’s main international airport, Toussaint Louverture International Airport, temporarily paused operations, the source also said.

has reached out to Spirit Airlines and the Haitian National Police for comment.

This is the latest case in which alleged violence has caused flight disruptions in Haiti.

Last month, a United Nations (UN) helicopter was also hit by bullets while flying over Port-au-Prince. In a separate incident in October, gangs attacked US embassy vehicles with gunfire, prompting the evacuation of 20 embassy employees.

In late February and early March, gang attacks at the airport forced airlines to suspend flights to Toussaint Louverture Airport for weeks.

A flight attendant reported “minor injuries” after the Haiti-bound Spirit Airlines plane suffered damage “consistent with gunshots,” an airline spokesperson told .

The flight took off from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and was scheduled to land in Haiti’s capital, Port-au-Prince, but was diverted and landed safely in Santiago, Dominican Republic, the spokesperson said.

“No passenger injuries were reported. The aircraft has been removed from service, and we are arranging a different aircraft to return our passengers and crew to FLL [Fort Lauderdale] today,” the Spirit Airlines spokesperson said, adding that the airline has suspended service to Port-au-Prince and Cap-Haitien “pending further evaluation.”

The Spirit Airlines flight on Monday descended to an altitude of 168 meters above the Tabarre neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, just east of Toussaint Louverture International Airport, before rapidly ascending and missing the runway, according to data reviewed by from FlightRadar24. .

Other airlines suspended flights in Haiti after the news. JetBlue canceled flights to and from Haiti from Monday afternoon through Thursday, a spokesperson said. American Airlines suspended service between Miami International Airport and Toussaint Louverture International Airport until Thursday, November 14.

Sunrise Airways, a commercial airline based in Haiti, told it suspended flights for the day until further notice.

–With information from Michael Rios and Avery Schmitz, from .