COUNTRY
SPECIFIC AFFAIRS:
European Commission (EU): The U.S.
has been exploring potential forums for expanding aviation opportunities
beyond those available through the traditional system of bilateral
agreements. Although EU
Commission does not have full negotiating authority from the
member states, we are continuing to hold informal, staff-level exploratory
discussions with their transportation officials in anticipation
of eventual Commission "competence" in international air
transportation.
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Improving
air links between the United States and Africa: In 1997,
the Department launched the African
Aviation Initiative to stimulate the dormant aviation relations
between the U.S. and Africa. Concurrently with the economic initiative,
but on a separate track, the Safe
Skies for Africa Initiative was developed to assist African
countries in improving air safety, security and air navigation.
In November 1999, Tanzania initialed the first Open-Skies
agreement between the U.S. and an African country, followed
quickly in 2000 by Namibia, Burkina Faso, Ghana, The Gambia, Nigeria,
Morocco, Rwanda, Benin, and Senegal. Cape Verde and Uganda signed
on in 2002. Talks continue to be held with other countries that
express interest in Open Skies. For further information, contact
the Office of International Aviation.
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MULTILATERAL
AFFAIRS:
APEC Multilateral Open Skies Agreement:
On May 1, 2001, the United States and Brunei, Chile, New Zealand and
Singapore, four of the United States' partners in the 21-member
Asia-Pacific Economic
Cooperation (APEC) forum, signed a multilateral
Open Skies aviation agreement. The
Multilateral Agreement represents the first successful effort to expand
the Open-Skies approach on a multinational basis. In addition to the typical
Open Skies provisions, the
multilateral APEC agreement substantially liberalizes the traditional
airline ownership requirement, thus enhancing foreign carriers' access to
outside investment. We
will continue to urge additional APEC countries, especially those with which
we have bilateral Open Skies agreements (Korea, Malaysia, Peru, and Taiwan),
to accede to the multilateral agreement. For further information, contact
the
Office of International Aviation.
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Bilateral
Aviation Agreements: The Office
of International Aviation, together with counterparts at the
U.S. Department
of State, represents the United States in negotiating rights
for U.S. airlines to serve foreign markets. The agreements reached
between the United States and each foreign country outline services
and doing business practices that will govern operations by airlines
of each country. Such agreements normally include provisions regarding
the cities that can be served by carriers of each country, the number
of flights that they can operate for both passenger and cargo scheduled
services, as well as charter services, and various doing business
rules that will govern the services of each country’s carriers.
The United States has
bilateral ("open
skies")
aviation agreements with 94
countries. It is the policy of the United States that fully open
airline markets will provide the most competitive and
price-sensitive service for consumers. As a result, it is the
Department’s policy in international negotiations to seek agreements
that do not limit the number of carriers that may serve, the
capacity that they offer, or the prices that they charge. The
Office of International Aviation
maintains a list of all aviation agreements between the United States
and its foreign trading partners.
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Multilateral
Aviation Agreements: Historically, the United
States has negotiated air service rights for U.S. airlines on a
bilateral basis. Given the global nature of the airline industry
now and of the services provided, the United States is progressing
beyond this approach and negotiating aviation agreements that encompass
services involving more than one foreign trading partner. The first
such agreement was with four of the countries in the Asia-Pacific
Economic cooperation (APEC) forum. This multilateral aviation
agreement represents the first successful effort to expand the Open-Skies
provisions in a broader context. The
European Union, comprising several European countries, has received
a mandate to negotiate an aviation agreement with the United States.
The Department, together with counterparts at the State
Department, expects to begin such negotiations with the European
Union in the near future.
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Open
Skies Agreement: See Bilateral
Agreements
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SPECIAL
AUTHORITIES:
Canadian
Air Taxi Operators: Most airlines from foreign countries
that seek to serve the United States must obtain economic authority
in the form of a foreign air carrier permit from the Department
of Transportation. To obtain such authorization, the carrier
must provide information about its officers and directors, ownership,
finances, and compliance disposition. Canadian operators of small
aircraft (fewer than 60 seats) that want to operate transborder
services between the United States and Canada must register with
the Department under Part
294 of the Department’s economic regulations, 14
CFR Part 294 and provide evidence of insurance coverage for
their operations by submitting
Form 6411 under Part 205 of the Department’s regulations,
14
CFR Part 205. The Department has simplified the economic licensing
process for these carriers, similar to the process for U.S. air
taxi operators, because of the limited scope of services by these
carriers and the smaller size aircraft that they operate. However,
Canadian charter air taxi operators (as do U.S. air taxi operators)
must also obtain operating authority from the Federal
Aviation Administration to comply with the U.S. Government’s
safety regulations (14
CFR 129). To apply, Canadian
Charter Air Taxi Operators must submit an application on
OST-Form 4505
with the Special
Authorities Division of the Office
of International Aviation. Those applications are listed in
the Department’s Weekly List
of Undocketed Applications. Interested parties have
28 days to file comments with the Department. The Department approves
such registrations if the applicant complies with Part
294, has received its FAA Part
129 authorization and has demonstrated that it is properly owned
and controlled by citizens of Canada. The Department generally acts
on such applications within 30 days of the filing of the registration
application. The Office of International
Aviation maintains a list of all properly registered Canadian
Charter Air Taxi Operators. For further information, contact
the Special
Authorities Division.
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Foreign
Air Freight Forwarders:
Any person not a citizen
of the United States that undertakes the indirect (not operating
aircraft) transportation of property either within the United States
or outbound from the United States must first register with the
U.S. Department of
Transportation. Part 297 of the Department’s economic regulations sets forth the registration requirements and the operating rules for these services. Foreign air freight forwarders do not operate aircraft, but legally serve as the principal (rather than an agent) with respect to the responsibility for arranging the transportation of property
from the point of receipt to the point of destination and use for
the whole or any part of the journey, the services of direct air
carriers (airlines). Applicant foreign freight forwarders must apply
by filing OST Form 4506
together with an $11 filing fee (if applicable) to the
Special Authorities
Division of the Office of International Aviation.
These applications are published in a weekly list of undocketed
applications filed. Comments with respect to any application must be
filed with the Department (Special Authorities Division, Office of
International Aviation) within 28 days of the date the application
is filed. The Department will approve a registration if it
determines that the foreign air freight forwarder is owned and
controlled by citizens of the foreign country involved, that the
foreign government provides reciprocity to U.S. citizen air freight
forwarders for similar services, and the application otherwise
complies with the regulations. The Department may reject an
application if it fails to comply with the regulations, the
government of the foreign freight forwarder does not provide
reciprocal authorizations for U.S. freight forwarders, or such
rejection is otherwise in the public interest. The Department may
also impose conditions on the operations conducted by the foreign
air freight forwarder. The Special Authorities Division maintains
a list of all
properly registered foreign air freight forwarders.
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Public Charters:
Any person that wishes to arrange charter flights that are advertised and
held out to members of the general public must first submit a charter
prospectus to the Department (Special Authorities Division of the
Office of International Aviation) which contains the required
information set forth in Part 380 of the DOT's Economic Regulations
(14 CFR Part 380) together with a $39 filing fee (and if applicable a
$10 foreign tour operator registration fee) payable to the
Department of Transportation. A person conducting such operations is
generally referred to as a "tour operator" and are classified as a
form of "indirect" air carrier. Tour operators differ from travel "agents" in that they
undertake the legal responsibility to the passenger for providing the
transportation service. Our regulations include requirements designed to
protect customers' monies. Tour packages may or may not include hotel
accommodations. For access to all forms relating to the application
process click here.
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U.S.
AND FOREIGN AIR CARRIER LICENSING:
Alliances
and Code Shares Between and Among Major U.S. Carriers: U.S.
air carriers are required to submit cooperative service agreements
that they have with each other, such as reciprocal code sharing,
joint frequent flyer and lounge access, and joint marketing, to
the Department for review before they implement those agreements.
49 USC 41720. The
Department does not approve or disapprove the agreements. Rather,
the Department reviews the agreements to ensure that they would
not harm the public or are anti competitive. The Department can
take action under its statutory authority to preserve competition
under
49
USC 41712.
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Code
Shares (Authorization, Safety and Report):
Code
sharing is a marketing arrangement in which an airline places its
designator code on a flight operated by another airline, and sells
tickets for that flight. Airlines throughout the world continue
to form code-share arrangements to strengthen or expand their market
presence and competitive ability. U.S. and foreign air carriers
that want to operate code-shared services, must first obtain authorization
from the Department in the form of a Statement
of Authorization under Part
212 of the Department’s economic regulations, 14
CFR Part 212. The Department approves the application if it
determines that it is in the public interest. In assessing the public
interest benefits, the Department considers whether the code-share
operations are provided for in a bilateral agreement between the
United States and the homeland government of the foreign air carrier(s)
involved, the benefits to the public from expansion of services
and fare options, and the the impact the code share would have on
airline competition. Before any code-shared operations can be implemented,
the U.S. carrier must conduct a safety audit of its foreign carrier
code-share partner to ensure that the operations meet acceptable
international standards and submit the results of that audit for
review by the Federal
Aviation Administration. The U.S. Air Carrier Licensing Division
in the Office of International Aviation
maintains a
list
of all code shares involving U.S. and foreign air carriers.
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Competitive
Impact of International Code Sharing and Alliances: U.S.
carrier relationships with foreign airlines play a major role in
the U.S. aviation industry's participation and competitive position
in the "global" marketplace. A study by the Office
of Aviation Analysis served as the economic basis for development
of the Department's international aviation policy to encourage international
alliances and spread deregulation's benefits to world markets. As
a result, there has been considerable growth in U.S. carrier code-sharing
arrangements with foreign airlines as well as growth in the more
comprehensive U.S. carrier alliances (cooperative service and marketing
agreements) with foreign airlines. The alliance agreements, which
nearly always include a code-sharing component, are frequently accompanied
by requests for relief from the antitrust laws, which otherwise
might prevent the carriers from cooperating on certain aspects of
their joint services, such as fares and capacity, as though they
were a single airline. Major code-sharing and alliance arrangements
require careful examination in terms of their impact on competition
in both domestic and international markets. The Office
of International Aviation processes U.S./foreign carrier code-share
applications and maintains a list of
code-share
arrangements between U.S. and foreign carriers. The Office
of Aviation Analysis is responsible for processing applications
for anti-trust immunity and maintains a list
of all immunized alliances. Two major studies by the
Office of Aviation Analysis have been instrumental in developing
the Department's ongoing policies regarding international alliances:
Global Deregulation
Takes Off (1999) and Transatlantic
Deregulation-The Alliance Network Effect (2000).
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Complaints
by U.S. carriers against foreign governments and/or foreign airlines:
49
U.S.C. 41310 provides that the Department may take action in
response to anti-competitive, discriminatory, predatory or unjustifiable
activities by a foreign government or foreign carrier against a
U.S. carrier. The Department may take such action upon a complaint
by a U.S. carrier or on its own initiative. The Department has up
to 180 days from the date that the complaint is filed to take action
to resolve the issues raised, dismiss the complaint, or resolve
it through diplomatic channels without taking any retaliatory action.
There are, however, specific criteria that the Department must meet
to take the full period available under the statute for acting on
the complaint. Specifically, within 60 days, the Department must
approve, deny, or dismiss the complaint. It can extend the action
deadline for 30 days if it determines that the issues raised in
the complaint can be resolved through discussions with the foreign
country involved. It can continue to extend the action deadline
for up to 90 additional days if it determines that negotiations
with the foreign country have progressed to the point that a resolution
is imminent. Procedurally, upon the filing of a complaint, the Department
issues an order soliciting comments from interested parties. After
receipt of those comments, the Department either extends the action
deadline, or acts on the complaint. If the Department acts on the
complaint, it may propose a sanction to redress the actions against
the U.S. carrier(s), or defer action on what sanction would be appropriate
while it continues its intergovernmental discussions with the foreign
government. If the Department proposes a sanction, then all parties
are afforded an opportunity to comment before the Department takes
final action, subject to Presidential review. Generally speaking, the intergovernmental process
has been very successful in resolving complaints filed by U.S. carriers.
Action on all complaints is coordinated with the Department
of State, the Department
of Commerce, and the U.S.
Trade Representative. These complaints are processed by the
U.S. Air Carrier Licensing Division
in the Office of International Aviation.
A
U.S. carrier may seek redress for anti competitive practices, or
the Department on its own initiative may seek such redress under
Part
213 of the Department’s regulations, 14
CFR Part 213, rather than under 49
U.S.C. 41310 or it may seek use of Part
213 in conjunction with such a complaint. Under Part
213, the Department may require a foreign air carrier to seek
approval of its schedules for all or a portion of its services involving
the United States if it finds that such action is in the public
interest and that the government of the foreign air carrier has,
over the objections of the United States, (1) taken an action that
impairs, limits, or denies operating rights to a U.S. carrier; or
(2) otherwise denied a U.S. carrier a fair and equal opportunity
to compete. This is often referred to as Phase 1 of the Part
213 process. The foreign air carrier may continue to operate
the filed schedules unless and until the Department issues an order
notifying the carrier that all or a portion of the schedules are
contrary to the public interest or applicable law. This is often
referred to as Phase 2 of the 213 process. A Department order limiting
the operations of a foreign carrier under Part
213 is subject to Presidential approval before it becomes effective.
The requirement to file schedules is an indication that the Department
is concerned about actions that have or would be taken against a
U.S. carrier by the foreign carrier’s government. An order
that would require discontinuation of services or that would prevent
implementation of proposed services is a retaliatory action taken
only after objections by the United States has objected to the foreign
carrier's homeland government and initial intergovernmental consultations
have not resolved the issues involved. In most cases the Department
has not had to progress to Phase 2 of the Part
213 process.
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Foreign
Air Carrier Intermodal Authority: Any foreign air
carrier that wants to provide or control the surface portion of
international cargo services beyond a 35-mile zone of the airport
or city limits must have additional authority from the Department
of Transportation under Part
222 (14 CFR Part 222) of the Department’s economic regulations.
Once authorized, the foreign air carrier can either truck the cargo
itself, provided that it has whatever regulating authority it needs
from U.S. trucking authorities, or it can contract for the service
from a properly authorized surface provider. The intermodal authority
enables the airline to advertise through service to other U.S. cities
as if it were flying there. The foreign air carrier does not need
any additional authorization to provide pickup and delivery services
within the 35-mile zone of the airport/city limits. If there is
an intergovernmental agreement providing for the intermodal services,
the authorization is generally routine, although a filing with the
Department is still necessary. If there is no intergovernmental
agreement, then a foreign carrier seeking to provide intermodal
services must seek an exemption from Part
222 under 49
U.S.C. 40109. The Licensing Divisions in the Office
of International Aviation have a complete list of those foreign
air carriers that have been awarded intermodal authority. For further
information contact the Office of International
Aviation.
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Foreign
Carrier Licensing:
Any
airline of a foreign country that wants to provide service to/from
the United States must obtain two authorizations from the Department
of Transportation—“economic” authority from the
Office of the Secretary of Transportation and “safety”
authority from the Federal
Aviation Administration. 49
USC 41301. The economic authority may be in the form of a foreign
air carrier permit or an exemption. 49
USC 41302 and 40109.
Permit authority is longer in duration. Authority by exemption may
be awarded for a maximum of two years at any one time. To receive
authority from the Department, the foreign air carrier must file
an application that provides information about the ownership and
the management personnel of the airline, its financial condition,
its operating plan, and the ability of the company and its personnel
to comply with laws and regulations. In addition the airline must
provide evidence of its operating authority from its homeland government
and, in most cases, designation by its government to operate the
proposed services. The Foreign Air Carrier Licensing Division in
the Office of International Aviation
processes these applications and maintains a list of licensed foreign
air carriers. Foreign carriers must also comply with the Accident
Plan and Passenger Manifest requirements
of the Statute. Due to the scope and size aircraft operated by charter
air taxi operators of Canada, the Department has provided simplified
licensing requirements for those carriers. 14
CFR Part 294. (Also see Canadian Air Taxi).
Some
foreign companies want to operate aircraft to the United States
on just an occasional basis and do not offer their services to the
general public. Such companies are permitted to operate to/from
and in some cases within the United States on a limited basis. 14
CFR Part 375 of the Department’s Economic Regulations sets
forth the regulatory requirements for these services. The Foreign
Air Carrier Licensing Division processes these applications and maintains
records about these operations.
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Procedures for Canadian Carriers to Operate
Season-Long Professional Sports Team Charters to/from the United
States:
Following a recent exchange of letters between
officials of the Governments of the United States and Canada, the
Department has notified Canadian air carriers of new procedures they
must follow in order to operate season-long professional sports team
charters that would make stopovers in the United States. These
procedures provide that Canadian carriers must formally agree to put
in place enhanced monitoring and security measures before commencing
any such charters. Canada has implemented similar procedures
applicable to U.S. carriers wishing to conduct sports team charters
to Canada.
Related
documents:
Canada letter (PDF)
(HTM)
U.S. Letter (PDF)
(HTM)
Notice (PDF)
(HTM)
Letter Agreement (Doc)
(HTM)
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U.S.
Air Carrier Charter Allocations: Some of the
bilateral aviation agreements between the United States and foreign
countries limit the number of passenger, combination, and/or all-cargo
charters that U.S. carrier may operate. It has been the Department’s
policy to distribute the available charters to interested U.S. airlines
on a “first-come,” “first-served” basis
unless and until it is demonstrated that there is greater demand
than supply of charters. Under a “first-come,” “first-served”
allocation, interested carriers apply by letter to the Department
and the Department allocates the charters to the carrier by issuing
a “Notice of Consistency” which describes the charters
involved and the time-frame during which they would be performed,
and notes that the award is “consistent” with the aviation
agreement between the countries. That notice is transmitted to the
carrier and the appropriate government officials in the foreign
country. If carriers are interested in operating more charters than
are available, then the Department must use comparative selection
procedures to determine how the charters should be allocated among
the interested carriers. Contact the U.S. Air Carrier Licensing
Division in the Office
of International Aviation for further information.
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U.S.
Air Carrier Frequency Allocations: Many
of our aviation agreements restrict the level of scheduled services
that U.S. carriers may provide between the United States and the
foreign country involved or between the foreign country and third
countries (fifth-freedom
rights). The frequency restrictions may be on direct services;
code-share services (same country (involving carriers of the same
country), bilateral (involving a carrier from the U.S. and a carrier
from the foreign country involved), or third-country (involving
a U.S. carrier and a carrier from a third country); and/or overflights.
Carriers apply for such allocations under 14
CFR. Part 302, Subpart C. If more U.S. carriers seek frequencies
than are available, then the Department must allocate the frequencies
among the U.S. carriers using comparative selection procedures.
Under such procedures each applicant is afforded the opportunity
to present written evidence as to why it should be allocated the
frequencies it seeks and to file comments on the other carrier applications
before the Department makes its selection(s). Where the frequencies
are allocated using the comparative selection procedures described
above, the Department generally first issues a tentative decision on the allocation,
to which interested parties may comment, and after review of those
comments, issues a final decision. Contact the
U.S. Air Carrier
Licensing Division within the Office
of International Aviation for further information.
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U.S.
Carrier International Route Authority Licensing (Carrier-PDF)
(Carrier-HTM)
(Country-PDF)
(Country-HTM):
This report summarizes the route
authority granted to U.S. air carriers in numerous certificates
and exemptions issued by the Department by city-pair markets. While
the information is substantially correct, this is a resource for
internal use and an inadvertent error may occur. Moreover, certificate
or exemption conditions may sometimes restrict the authority and
these conditions are not reflected in the report. Thus, the order
numbers or the notices of action taken are provided for reference.
The U.S. Air Carrier Licensing Division of the Office
of International Aviation maintains and periodically updates the publication
lists, which is available on the Department's web page.
For information on
obtaining U.S. air carrier economic authority, see "U.S.
Air Carrier Economic Authority".
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OTHER:
International
Pricing (Standard Foreign Fare Level):
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Passenger
Manifests:
The
Department requires that U.S. and foreign airlines operating aircraft
with more than 60 seats collect information on the name of each
U.S. citizen on the aircraft and to request the name and phone number
of a contact for that passenger for all flights that have either
an origin or destination in the United States. 14
CFR Part 243. The purpose of this information is to ensure that
the U.S. government has prompt and adequate information about the
passengers on the aircraft in case of an aviation disaster. In the
case of an aviation disaster, the carrier involved would be required
to provide the information to the Department
of State and, in certain instances, to the National
Transportation Safety Board. These requirements apply not only
to passenger carriers but also to all-cargo carriers, since they
could transport cargo handlers and other persons on their aircraft.
The Foreign Air Carrier Licensing Division in the Office
of International Aviation maintains information regarding the
passenger manifest requirements for foreign air carriers. The Department’s
Office
of Aviation Enforcement and Proceedings maintains this information
with respect to U.S. carriers.
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Reports,
Statistics, Studies,
and Other Publications:
The
Office of Aviation and International Affairs publishes many reports,
studies, and other publications that are directly related to domestic
and international issues of interest or concern to the Department.
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U.S. International Air Passenger and Freight
Statistics:
The
U.S. International Air Passenger and Freight
Statistics report is produced by the Office
of Aviation Analysis. It has been developed to provide the public with
additional access to international aviation data relating to service and
traffic levels in specific international markets. The report is restricted
to nonstop commercial traffic traveling between international points and
U.S. airports.
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