Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares confirmed in Brussels that a Spanish Air Force charter carrying 22 Spanish nationals — along with several Venezuelan and other EU citizens — would land at Madrid’s Torrejón base at 15:15 h on 13 July. The operation is Spain’s second evacuation flight following the twin earthquakes that devastated western Venezuela last week, leaving nearly 4,500 dead and dozens of Spaniards missing. The aircraft also performs a personnel rotation for the START field hospital Spain deployed to the disaster zone.
![Spain organises second repatriation flight from quake-hit Venezuela]()
For companies needing to move personnel quickly in or out of Spain during emergencies like this, VisaHQ can streamline the visa and travel-document process. Their online platform offers real-time guidance on Spanish entry requirements and can coordinate expedited applications for onward destinations such as Venezuela, helping mobility managers avoid administrative delays when every hour counts.
The outgoing medical team will be replaced by fresh staff as part of a coordinated EU Civil Protection Mechanism response. Albares thanked Belgium, the UK and Canada for consular assistance in identifying foreign victims of the disaster, which also killed 41 Spanish citizens holidaying in the Andean region. From a mobility perspective, the evacuation underscores the importance of robust crisis-management protocols for Spanish multinationals with operations in Latin America. Firms are advised to review employee-tracking systems and ensure that emergency-travel insurance covers chartered military flights, which traditional policies sometimes exclude. The Foreign Ministry has opened a registry for Spaniards stranded in Venezuela; companies should encourage staff to enrol to facilitate future lifts. The Government has not yet indicated whether additional rotations will occur, but Defence sources say the START hospital will remain until at least mid-August. Employers planning urgent travel to Venezuela should anticipate bottlenecks at Maiquetía airport and consider routing through neighbouring Colombia. Temporary travel-restriction advisories remain in effect. Albares also used the Brussels press point to highlight EU support for wildfire-hit Almería, a reminder that mobility planners must prepare for climate-related disruptions inside Spain as well as abroad.
For companies needing to move personnel quickly in or out of Spain during emergencies like this, VisaHQ can streamline the visa and travel-document process. Their online platform offers real-time guidance on Spanish entry requirements and can coordinate expedited applications for onward destinations such as Venezuela, helping mobility managers avoid administrative delays when every hour counts.
The outgoing medical team will be replaced by fresh staff as part of a coordinated EU Civil Protection Mechanism response. Albares thanked Belgium, the UK and Canada for consular assistance in identifying foreign victims of the disaster, which also killed 41 Spanish citizens holidaying in the Andean region. From a mobility perspective, the evacuation underscores the importance of robust crisis-management protocols for Spanish multinationals with operations in Latin America. Firms are advised to review employee-tracking systems and ensure that emergency-travel insurance covers chartered military flights, which traditional policies sometimes exclude. The Foreign Ministry has opened a registry for Spaniards stranded in Venezuela; companies should encourage staff to enrol to facilitate future lifts. The Government has not yet indicated whether additional rotations will occur, but Defence sources say the START hospital will remain until at least mid-August. Employers planning urgent travel to Venezuela should anticipate bottlenecks at Maiquetía airport and consider routing through neighbouring Colombia. Temporary travel-restriction advisories remain in effect. Albares also used the Brussels press point to highlight EU support for wildfire-hit Almería, a reminder that mobility planners must prepare for climate-related disruptions inside Spain as well as abroad.
