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Airlines start halting flights to Cuba amid US fuel blockade

Kate Hairsine with Reuters, AFP
February 11, 2026

Three Canadian airlines have suspended flights to Cuba due to a lack of guaranteed fuel supply. Germany also issued a travel warning.

A man pushes a kart with luggage at the Jose Marti International Airport in Cuba on February 9, 2026.
Three Canadian airlines suspend flights as Cuba warns that jet fuel won't be availableImage: Norlys Perez/REUTERS

What to know:

  • Two more Canadian airlines join Air Canada in suspending services to Cuba
  • Germany issued an advisory against all non-essential travel to Cuba
  • Fuel stocks on the island are running out as US puts pressure on Cuba's oil suppliers

Which airlines have suspended services to Cuba?

Two more Canadian airlines, Air Transat and WestJet, announced a halt in flights to Cuba. The move comes after Air Canada said Monday it was stopping service to the island due to a lack of guaranteed fuel supply.

Air Transat said it was canceling all flights to Cuba until at least April 30. This follows "the rapid developments of the past few hours and the announcement by Cuban authorities of an anticipated aviation fuel shortage at destination airports," it said in a statement.

Cuba warned on Sunday that jet fuel will be unavailable at airports across the island beginning 10 February through 11 March.

WestJet announced an "orderly wind-down" of its services, adding it would begin sending empty planes to Cuba, stocked with extra fuel, to bring customers home.

Air Canada said it would also send empty flights to pick up and fly home about 3,000 customers in Cuba.

Similar crises have prompted carriers to refuel in nearby third countries, including Panama, the Bahamas, the Dominican Republic and the United States.

The fuel shortage is a further economic blow to the country that relies heavily on tourism.

Cubans feel the squeeze as fuel dwindles under US pressure

02:43

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Why doesn't Cuba have oil and jet fuel?

Historically, Venezuela was the biggest supplier of oil and jet fuel to Cuba followed by Mexico.

Venezuela provided about one-third of the island's daily needs in 2025.

But Cuba hasn't received any crude or refined products from the South American country since mid-December when the US started blocking Venezuelan oil exports to the communist-run island.

This was even before US troops kidnapped Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro in early January. 

Mexico only ever shipped a fraction of the oil that came from Venezuela.

Cuban fuel crisis disrupts tourism from Canada

01:58

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But Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum confirmed on Monday that oil shipments to Cuba are "on hold"  following US President Donald Trump threats to impose tariffs on any country that provides oil to the Caribbean island.

Why has Germany issued a travel warning for Cuba?

Germany advised on Tuesday against all non-essential travel to Cuba

"Cuba is facing an acute energy crisis, which is also being compounded by widespread dilapidated energy infrastructure," the German foreign ministry said in the advisory.

The country is facing "significant shortages in energy and fuel supplies, which are affecting all areas of life" including medical care, it said.

"Public transport, street lighting, traffic lights, cash machines, communication and security systems are already severely restricted or may fail," it said.

Cuba's economy faces a future without Venezuela's oil

02:26

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How bad is Cuba's energy crisis?

The oil shortages have threatened to plunge Cuba into complete darkness, with power plants struggling to keep the lights on.

The Cuban government has announced emergency measures, including a four-day working week for state-owned companies and fuel sale restrictions.

Cuban officials also announced Monday that bank hours have been reduced and cultural events suspended.

In the capital Havana, the public bus system has effectively ground to a halt, leaving residents stranded as endemic power outages and grueling fuel lines reach a breaking point.

Cuba in crisis amid fuel shortages, ongoing blackouts

Power outages, empty gas stations and runaway inflation: As the US vows to force regime change in Cuba and blocks oil supplies to the island, families are improvising as best they can to weather the crisis.

Image: Yamil Lage/AFP/Getty Images

Record freezing temperatures

Fuel shortages and blackouts have hit the island especially hard given an unusual cold snap in the region. On Tuesday, Cuba reported freezing temperatures for the first time in its recorded history, according to the Institute of Meteorology. Cuba has been under an embargo for decades, leading to ongoing shortages. Now, the US is moving to block all oil from reaching the island.

Image: Adalberto Roque/AFP/Getty Images

Out of gas

Much of daily life in Cuba has ground to a halt as the US restricts the island's fuel supply. Lines at gas stations are getting longer, and seemingly endless blackouts have been affecting water, communication and traffic. Cuba has confirmed "communications" with the US, but a formal dialogue has yet to be established. Mexico, meanwhile, has announced it will send humanitarian aid to the island.

Image: Ramon Espinosa/AP Photo/picture alliance

Daily life in a blackout

Many are bracing for survival as the US threatens to impose tariffs on any country seeking to sell oil to Cuba. Here, Alberto Villar uses a lamp and a gas stove to prepare his dinner during yet another blackout in Havana. Over the course of a decades-long economic embargo, many Cubans have learned to make do with modest means.

Image: Norlys Perez/REUTERS

Charcoal saves the day

On the outskirts of Havana, Igmel Tamayo sells oranges and charcoal. Since the US moved to block Venezuelan oil and money from reaching Cuba, fuel shortages and power outages have worsened. Charcoal, while expensive, has been a useful stopgap in the ongoing energy crisis.

Image: Norlys Perez/REUTERS

Dinner over a wood fire

In the remote Poey neighborhood of Havana, a father cooks sausages outdoors after yet another blackout leaves the family without electricity in the house.

Image: Yamil Lage/AFP/Getty Images

Repair, don't replace

Pedro Romero is a car mechanic in Havana, but his job is becoming more and more difficult, as gas and spare parts are in increasingly short supply. People will even carry washing machines across town to have them repaired. Sustainability is key to weathering the crisis: fix more, waste less.

Image: Norlys Perez/REUTERS

Improvisation and creativity

Yaimara Ofarill is getting ready for work at a bakery in Havana. Rising at the crack of dawn is not easy, especially when there's no power to turn on the lights. Luckily, she has a flashlight on her phone, which lets her see just enough to put on some makeup in front of the mirror. Things might not be easy, but creativity and improvisation have always been part of Cuban life.

Image: Norlys Perez/REUTERS

Scarcity determines every meal

Lines in front of the bakeries are long, and anyone wanting bread must be patient. With fuel shortages come soaring prices for food and transport. Everything is in short supply. People buy whatever they can, while inflation eats into their savings. The mounting US stranglehold on the island has sent Cuba into its worst economic crisis in decades.

Image: Norlys Perez/REUTERS
8 images

Edited by: Roshni Majumdar

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