Overview
- Flight-tracking platforms and multiple media reports indicated two U.S. Navy F/A-18s entered Venezuelan airspace over the Gulf of Venezuela for about 40 minutes, with callsigns RHINO11 and RHINO12 visible to thousands of observers.
- A U.S. defense official described the sortie as a routine training flight that remained in international airspace, highlighting a direct dispute over the incursion claim and long-contested air and maritime lines in the gulf.
- The episode unfolded as Operation Lanza del Sur continues with the USS Gerald R. Ford and roughly 15,000–16,000 personnel in the southern Caribbean, following recent B-52 and P-8 patrols and the same-day appearance of an MQ-4C Triton in the Maiquetía FIR.
- President Donald Trump said Nicolás Maduro “has his days numbered” and warned that land attacks are coming, while Caracas declared a state of emergency, mobilized forces and deployed S-300VM air-defense batteries.
- The administration faces congressional scrutiny over lethal strikes on suspected drug boats since September, with reports of dozens killed in roughly two dozen attacks.