WASHINGTON – An unmanned U.S. reconnaissance drone was observed last week operating over the Caribbean Sea in or near airspace administered by Venezuela, according to publicly available flight-tracking data. The aircraft was identified as an MQ-4C Triton operated by the United States Navy, flying during a period of heightened scrutiny over civil aviation safety in the region.
The drone was detected during a prolonged maritime patrol north of Venezuela within the Maiquetía Flight Information Region (FIR), which is managed by Venezuela and covers a wide swath of Caribbean airspace. Flight patterns visible on tracking platforms were consistent with intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance missions.
Unusual Identification and Altitude
Notably, tracking data showed the aircraft using an identification code typically associated with the manned P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft. At the same time, the platform operated at altitudes approaching 49,000 feet—well above the Poseidon’s usual ceiling—pointing to an unmanned system with extended endurance.
Transponder Use Under the Spotlight
During the mission, the drone’s transponder was switched on and off intermittently, meaning it was not continuously visible to civilian air traffic control systems. That practice has drawn attention in the Caribbean following recent reports from Curaçao and Aruba of military aircraft operating without active transponders, coinciding with several near-miss incidents involving commercial flights.
Role and Regional Context
The MQ-4C Triton is a long-range, high-altitude surveillance drone designed to monitor vast maritime areas for intelligence gathering. The United States frequently deploys the platform over international waters in the Caribbean as part of counter-narcotics and broader regional security operations.
Whether the observed flight crossed into Venezuelan sovereign airspace cannot be confirmed using open-source data alone. Caracas has previously characterized U.S. military operations in or near the Maiquetía FIR as provocative, even when conducted over international waters. U.S. authorities have not issued a public explanation regarding this specific flight.
The sighting adds to ongoing debate about military activity within civil aviation-managed airspace and its implications for commercial flight safety in the Caribbean. In recent days, Curaçao and Aruba have held diplomatic discussions with U.S. counterparts aimed at improving transparency and ensuring consistent transponder use by military aircraft operating near civilian air routes.