“Caracas? I’ve not seen that destination in a while,” one TSA worker said while looking at a departures board at the Miami airport on Thursday. The remark came as the first direct commercial flight between the US and Venezuela in nearly a decade took off that same day, as the two countries restore ties following the US ouster of Nicolás Maduro in January.
Hard Numbers
Jet-setting to Caracas

Natalie Johnson
By Natalie JohnsonMay 01, 2026
Natalie Johnson
Natalie Johnson is the Deputy Head of Content at GZERO Media and edits the GZERO Daily newsletter. Her career has spanned producing for broadcast cable news at outlets like MSNBC, VICE TV, and NewsNation, as well as writing for digital media. She's also the creator and co-editor of an anthology called "Black Love Letters," published in 2023 through John Legend's GetLifted book imprint. Natalie studied political science at Scripps College and holds a master's degree in sociology from Columbia University.

















