Open skies accord delayed
May 12, 2006The date for bringing in a possible "open skies" agreement between the US and EU has been pushed back to March next year, officials have stated.
The deadline for a deal has been postponed as a result of a disagreement between the US and Europe over the amount of investment European companies can have in US airlines.
Negotiations over the final text are still ongoing. The aim is to enable any EU airline to fly to a US airport and vice versa, which is expected to lead to increased competition and cheaper flights for passengers.
John Byerly, the US deputy assistant Secretary of State for Transportation, expressed confidence that a consensus on the foreign control issue could be reached by the end of the year, allowing a deal to become effective in time for next year's summer travel season.
However, this would also depend on whether the EU accepts the US proposal in October.
The US currently has separate deals with individual EU countries, which the landmark deal would replace and so change the balance of airline competition across the Atlantic.
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