Colombian Airline Resumes Flights to Venezuela After Warplane Scare

Venezuelan warplanes approached a Colombian Avianca airline AVT flight on Friday. The incident caused a diplomatic incident and triggered the airline to stop its flights to and from the socialist country.

Following the cancellation of transport to Venezuela when Venezuelan military aircraft briefly approached a passenger jet flying from Madrid to Bogota on Friday evening, Avianca said it would restart flights on Sunday. The unpleasant episode resulted in diplomatic conversations and Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro ordering an investigation.

Avianca, in a statement on Saturday evening, said, “After clarifications between the governments of Colombia and Venezuela about the incident registered last night in Venezuelan skies with an Avianca plane, the Colombian civil aviation authority has authorized the restart of operations to and from Venezuela,”

History of distrust between the two countries

For years, the South American neighbors have had an unstable relationship. Venezuela’s socialist government every so often charges Colombia of incitement. It also asserts in the other direction that Caracas has backed Colombian guerrillas.

Avianca’s flights were avoiding Venezuela on Saturday as data from online tracker FlightRadar24 showed. Further, a source from the airline company verified that flights to Venezuela had been stopped.

Flight data also showed the Avianca Boeing Dreamliner took a quick turn when coasting over west Venezuela around 2000 local time (2000 EST/0000 GMT) on Friday. This was consistent with a statement about the incident issued by the Colombian defense ministry.

The statement said that defense and foreign ministers of both countries discussed the plane incident. It also said President Maduro personally ordered the investigation on the incident.

Venezuelan warplane on “navigation mission”

During a visit to cacao growers on Saturday afternoon, Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos said that the ministers have spoken and cleared it all up, there’s no need to worry.

The Colombian statement mentioned Venezuelan authorities as saying its warplane was on a “navigation mission”. Venezuelan authorities did not directly respond to a request for comment.

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Clown Scare Spreads to Australia: Police Will Not Tolerate Pranks

Victoria, Australia – Creepy clown antics in the US has reached Australian shores. Authorities gave a stern warning after the initial sightings. On the Victoria Police Facebook page, they said that they are aware of the pranks of individuals scaring people wearing a clown costume.

Victoria Police statement read. “The clown purge appears to be a copycat of incidents being seen in the USA recently.  Any intimidating and threatening as well as anti-social behaviours will not be tolerated and will be investigated by Police.”

Campbelltown, Sydney also reported sightings in the area

In a Facebook post, Clown Nation Perth gave a threat that the Clowns are coming to the area.

The post said: “You will start seeing clown sightings soon. We have been preparing for a while now”

Australians showed their intolerance for such antics by setting up Facebook pages that focuses on “clown hunting”.

Where the it all Started

The creepy clown trend started in the US. Greenville, South Carolina recorded the first sighting of the creepy clown. Reports also indicate that these clowns were trying to lure children into the woods.

The antics soon spread to other states which include Alabama, Georgia, Pennsylvania and Oregon. Police forces from involved states have been on the lookout for these creepy clowns. Central Point Police in Oregon urged those people doing these pranks to “quit clowning around”.

#ClownLivesMatter

Meanwhile, professional clowns have organized a “#ClownLivesMatter” in the wake of the creepy clown scare sweeping the US. The group said that those pranksters in clown costumes were taking a “good, clean, wholesome art form and distorting it”.

A #ClownLivesMatter protest is set to take place in Tucson, Arizona next week. The professional clowns would march to remind everyone that the real clown spreads happiness and not fear. “This is a peaceful way to show clowns are not psycho killers. We want the public to feel safe and not be afraid. So come out, bring the family, meet a clown and get a hug!”

 

 

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