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Several airlines have suspended flights to Haiti after a passenger plane from the US was hit by gunfire as it tried to land in Port-au-Prince.<\/p>\n
Spirit Airlines Flight 951 from Fort Lauderdale in Florida was diverted to the neighbouring Dominican Republic, where it landed safely at Santiago Airport.<\/p>\n
A flight attendant suffered minor injuries but no passengers were hurt in the attack, the second in three weeks on aircraft flying over Haiti’s capital.<\/p>\n
The incident comes as a new prime minister took office in the crisis-hit country, which has been plagued by armed gangs and escalating violence. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Alix Didier Fils-Aim\u00e9 said his priority was “restoring security”, according to AFP news agency. <\/p>\n
Notwithstanding the country’s “difficult circumstances”, he promised to put all of his energy, skills and “patriotism at the service of the national cause”.<\/p>\n
The businessman, who stood unsuccessfully for a seat in the Senate in 2015, studied at Boston University. He was installed by the country’s ruling council after the previous leader, Garry Conille<\/a>, was ousted less than six months into the job.<\/p>\n The Spirit Airlines flight had been scheduled to land at Toussaint Louverture International Airport just before 12:00 (17:00 GMT) when it was hit.<\/p>\n Unverified video of the incident shared on social media appeared to show several bullet holes on the inside of the aircraft, where the crew sit during take-off and landing.<\/p>\n Spirit Airlines said that damage “consistent with gunfire” had been found when the plane was inspected at Santiago Airport. The aircraft was taken out of commission, Spirit added.<\/p>\n The airline said it had also suspended flights to Haiti “pending further evaluation”.<\/p>\n Two other US airlines, American Airlines and JetBlue, have also suspended flights to Haiti until at least Thursday.<\/p>\n The security situation further deteriorated in Haiti in recent months. In October, gang members opened fire at a UN helicopter, causing some airlines to temporarily cancel flights to the Caribbean nation.<\/p>\n A UN-backed policing mission, led by officers from Kenya, had begun in June in an attempt to wrest back control from gangs.<\/p>\n Spirit is a low-cost airline based in Florida which flies throughout the US, Caribbean and Latin America.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n