LATAM Airlines joins Venezuela airline exodus

LATAM Airlines Monday became the latest carrier to suspend its operations in Venezuela, blaming "the current complex economic scenario in the region." International airlines have struggled for years to repatriate revenue held in Venezuela's local bolivar currency, as the cash-strapped government failed to convert it to hard currency amid tight exchange controls. The government is holding about $3.8b in airline funds belonging to 24 carriers, according to the IATA. Many airlines now require passengers to pay fares in hard currency, but a deep recession and rocketing inflation has put foreign travel out of many Venezuelans' reach. "LATAM Airlines will suspend temporarily and for an undefined time its operations to Caracas airport," the Chile-based company said. Flights between Sao Paulo and Caracas will stop at the end of May, and those from Santiago and Lima will end in July, said the company, which is Latin America's largest airline. It said it would work to restart operations "as soon as conditions permitted." A LATAM Airlines spokesman said it had around $3m tied up in Venezuela.<br/>