U.S. Navy aircraft violates Venezuela's airspace

CARACAS (Reuters) - A U.S. Navy jet violated Venezuelanairspace around two small Caribbean islands over the weekend inwhat the South American country said was a provocationcoordinated with neighbouring Colombia.

Venezuela and the United States bicker over everything fromenergy policy to arms sales. The incursion comes amidheightened tensions over accusations that Venezuela helped aguerrilla army fighting the government in U.S. ally Colombia.

The Pentagon said a Navy aircraft on a counternarcoticsmission had navigation problems that led it to stray intoVenezuelan airspace on Saturday.

The U.S. ambassador in Caracas was being summoned toexplain the incident, Venezuela's foreign minister said.

"In the event a U.S. aircraft unintentionally enters intothe sovereign airspace of another nation, its crew is requiredto take swift action to exit the airspace and report theincident to their immediate chain of command, which thisaircrew apparently did," said U.S. Navy Cmdr. J.D. Gordon, aPentagon spokesman.

The anti-Washington government of President Hugo Chavezsaid the flight, which took the jet close to the OPEC member'spresidential retreat on the island of La Orchila, was aprovocation after Venezuela accused Colombian troops ofcrossing its border.

"This was a conscious action by the U.S. Navy," DefenceMinister Gustavo Rangel said at a news conference. "This isjust the latest step in a series of provocations."

Rangel said such incidents probably had happened in thepast, but now Venezuela has equipment to detect airspaceviolations in the area.

VIKING S-3

The U.S. warplane penetrated Venezuelan airspace around LaOrchila and another island about 80 miles from the country'smainland, Rangel said.

Venezuela's air traffic control contacted the aircraftafter it entered Venezuela's airspace. The jet identifieditself and told the Venezuelan authorities a possiblenavigation error had occurred, the Pentagon said.

The incident came against a backdrop of tensions betweenVenezuela and Colombia and the United States. Last week theysaid an Interpol probe into rebel document proved Chavez haslinks to Colombian guerrillas.

Chavez rejected the investigation and said he was reviewingties and trade with Colombia because of the accusations.

A U.S. Defence official said the plane was a Viking S-3, ajet often used in anti-drugs operations to track and attackboats.

Chavez frequently accuses the United States and Colombia ofplotting to invade Venezuela, one of the largest oil exportersto the United States.

Colombia specifically denied Chavez's charge over theweekend that 60 Colombian soldiers strayed some 500 yards (460metres) into Venezuelan territory on Friday.

The jet in Saturday's incident belongs to the JointInteragency Task Force South, an anti-drugs operation based inFlorida. It was on a mission from the Caribbean island ofCuracao, a U.S. official said.

Curacao is a former Dutch colony that the United Statesuses for military training.

La Orchila has a military base in addition to thepresidential residence. It is well-known in Venezuela becauseChavez was held prisoner there during a brief coup against himin 2002. Venezuela generally bans all but its military fromflying over the island.

(Additional reporting by Kristin Roberts and ArshadMohammed in Washington; writing by Frank Jack Daniel; Editingby Saul Hudson and Xavier Briand)