Concern has been expressed over an unprecedented show of force by the United States Navy (USN). Their fighter jets were observed flying low over Venezuela’s Gulf of Venezuela amid growing tensions between Washington and Caracas. AP News; The War Zone.
What Happened
On December 9, 2025, two US Navy F/A-18 Super Hornet jets flew into Venezuela’s Gulf of Venezuela and circled for 30-40 minutes, according to publicly available flight-tracking data.
The War Zone
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Military Times
US officials consider international airspace to be international in scope; this flight marked one of the closest known incursions by American warplanes into Venezuelan territorial waters in recent history.
AP News +2 Press TV +2.
US Defence Officials described this mission as a routine training flight, not intended to provoke. Still, its timing and scope caused alarm in Caracas and throughout Latin America due to US military buildup in this region. Military Times The War Zone
Context: A Broader Pressure Campaign

The overflight occurs amid an aggressive US military presence across the Caribbean and surrounding waters, where since September 2025 the US has conducted strikes against vessels suspected of drug trafficking as part of what some consider a military campaign against drug cartels dubbed an “armed conflict”. By some accounts this military effort could even include using aerial surveillance. WASHINGTON
Venezuela has strongly responded to this campaign. Caracas under Nicolas Maduro believes these flights near its territory pose a direct threat to its sovereignty; Venezuelan officials have asserted that the Gulf of Venezuela belongs to them, contrary to longstanding US claims for international waters in this area. Press TV reports.
Analysts suspect the public tracking of jets by sites like FlightRadar24 may have been planned in order to convey a message of deterrence or readiness instead of secrecy. The War Zone
Reactions and Risks
The flights were met with swift condemnation by Venezuelan authorities, who described them as provocative. Some political leaders and observers warn of unintended escalation should repeating such moves be misconstrued as reconnaissance or preludes for further actions by misinterpreting them as reconnaissance or prologue. Press TV + 2 Miami Herald
Critics of the US campaign contend that its mix of overflights with lethal strikes on suspected drug vessels raises dangerous ambiguities. Furthermore, the strikes have raised scrutiny from lawmakers who demand transparency regarding legal justification for such action at sea. Military Times
Venezuela considers the Gulf of Venezuela geopolitically and economically vital, given that it lies near major oil producing zones such as near Maracaibo city and Lake Maracaibo facilities. China Daily Asia
What This Means Moving Forward

The US flight marks an unprecedented surge of military pressure against Venezuela, which could prompt Caracas to further militarize the region – whether by installing additional naval and air defenses or mobilizing militia forces that increase risk. Press TV +2Wikipedia
Allies and neighboring countries will likely keep an eye on what’s unfolding, too, with tensions likely escalating between the US and Venezuela and those from neighboring regions over broader destabilization in the Caribbean — especially as US operations they frame as drug control operations but that many view as geopolitical signalling increase.

Overall, US flights over Venezuela’s Gulf show that what had once been considered routine US maritime and aerial presence has now become an instrument of pressure — with potentially profound ramifications on regional stability.