United Seeks Renewed Open Skies Efforts Between the U.S. and the U.K.Business Editors CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 10, 2002 United today applauded the decision of the United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. government to continue its quest for Verb 1. quest for - go in search of or hunt for; "pursue a hobby" quest after, go after, pursue look for, search, seek - try to locate or discover, or try to establish the existence of; "The police are searching for clues"; "They are searching for the an open skies agreement The Open Skies Agreement is a recently negotiated treaty between the United States and the European Union. The agreement will allow any European or U.S. airline to fly any route between any city in the EU and any city in the United States. with the United Kingdom. "We are disappointed that the U.K. government, backed by entrenched en·trench also in·trench v. en·trenched, en·trench·ing, en·trench·es v.tr. 1. To provide with a trench, especially for the purpose of fortifying or defending. 2. British Airways British Airways in full British Airways PLC International passenger airline based in London. In 1936 British Airways Ltd. was founded through the merger of three smaller airlines. and Virgin Atlantic, refuses to fully liberalize lib·er·al·ize v. lib·er·al·ized, lib·er·al·iz·ing, lib·er·al·iz·es v.tr. To make liberal or more liberal: "Our standards of private conduct have been greatly liberalized . . . the U.S.-U.K. market," said Michael Whitaker, vice president of International and Regulatory Affairs. "An open skies agreement in this most important transatlantic market is bound to stimulate travel and bring consumer benefits in the form of additional travel options and lower fares. United commends the U.S. government for its relentless pursuit of an open skies agreement with the U.K. We urge the U.S. to show a similar perseverance in negotiating an open skies agreement with one of our other major trading partners, Hong Kong." The current aviation agreement between the U.S. and the U.K. severely limits airline operations. For example, United is not allowed to increase flights in the Chicago-London market and is prohibited from matching British Airways' Denver-London services. The agreement also prevents United's partner airline, bmi british midland of the U.K., from initiating flights to the U.S. from its base at London's Heathrow Airport. An open skies agreement would remove these restrictions and create significant consumer benefits. United Airlines and United Express operate more than 3,200 flights a day on a route network that spans the globe. News releases and other information about United Airlines may be found at the company's website at www.united.com. |
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