The airline TAP Air Portugal had to cancel the cargo flight TP9532 from Caracas to Lisbon on Wednesday for an unusual reason. The Venezuelan authorities found drugs in the hold of the Airbus A330-900. The airline confirmed the incident to RTP.

The local authorities have found narcotics in the course of routine checks, which were also carried out with the help of sniffer dogs. According to TAP, these are said to have been found in the hold. The local law enforcement authorities are now investigating who deposited them there.

For the airline and its crew, the incident means an involuntary extension of their stay in Caracas. TAP emphasizes that the three crew members have been accommodated in a hotel. Both the airline and the crew on site should cooperate fully with the Venezuelan authorities and provide all information that is available.

For a long period of time, TAP Air Portugal did not operate all flights to Venezuela itself, but instead commissioned EuroAtlantic Airways to do so. TAP has only been flying itself again for a few weeks. Currently, cargo flights are almost exclusively carried out between the two countries. In the past, TAP justified the wet lease operation with security concerns, as the political situation in Venezuela has been tense for a long time.