Gunfire hits Spirit Airlines flight arriving in Port-au-Prince; plane lands in Dominican Republic

A Spirit-Airlines flight was was struck by gunfire Monday while attempting to land in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. The aircraft, which left from Fort Lauderdale, was diverted to an airport in the Dominican Republic where it landed safely, sources told the Miami Herald.

At least one person, a flight attendant, was grazed by a bullet, a source said. A spokesperson for Spirit Airlines did not respond to a Herald request for comment.

The incident forced the airport authority at Toussaint Louverture International Airport in Haiti's capital to ground all commercial flights. Flight tracking showed both Jetblue Airways and Amerijet Cargo planes turning away from Haiti.

The incident marks the second time in the last few weeks that an aircraft traveling over Port-au-Prince airspace was struck by gunfire from armed gangs. Last month, a United Nations helicopter was struck by gang gunfire and forced to return to the airport. No one was injured.

The incident on Monday occurred just hours before Haiti's ruling presidential council was set to swear in a new prime minister, businessman Alix Didier Fils-Aime, after ousting Prime Minister Garry Conille in an executive order that was leaked on Sunday and published on the council's X account early Monday morning.