The European Commission has published its new strategy for the EU’s External Aviation Policy. The Commission’s proposals – if implemented – would have a profound impact on route development for flights to and from Europe.
The Commission’s declared aims are to support the European aviation industry and to boost its international competitiveness by:
Negotiating new agreements with neighbouring countries such as Ukraine, Azerbaijan, Tunisia, Turkey and Egypt as well as China, Russia, the Gulf States, Japan, India and the ASEAN countries to give European airlines access to these growth markets;
Ensuring open and fair competition as a safeguard against unfair practices such as state aid given to non-EU airlines. Most notably, the Commission proposes to develop standard "fair competition clauses" to be agreed and included in existing bilateral air services agreements between EU Member States and non-EU countries; and
Tackling foreign ownership and control restrictions that deny carriers access to markets and capital (e.g. in the US). The Commission wants to pursue this at EU and at ICAO level.
Next steps:
This non-binding strategy document is only a first step, but it sets the tone and the pace for this process. EU Transport Ministers are expected to give their input at the December Transport Council, and the European Parliament’s Transport Committee can also be expected to adopt an opinion in the next six months. The Commission wants to move forward quickly and intends to bring forward a list of priorities for EU negotiating mandates with third countries in early 2013.
There is expected to be some push-back from member states, as the proposals would result in a transfer of competences to negotiate air transport agreements from member states to the EU level. However, even if not all measures will be supported by member states and the European Parliament, there is expected to be a push from Europe to further liberalise traffic between the EU and key air transport markets in the coming years.
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