Met With Representatives Of U.S. Carriers To Discuss Complaints

The Trump Administration is continuing to work with U.S. Airlines concerning their complaints that some Middle Eastern carriers are receiving unfair subsidies from their governments, giving them a competitive advantage.

The latest round of talks came Tuesday. Representatives of both U.S. and Gulf airlines met with administration officials at the U.S. State Department to discuss the subsidies, according to a report from U.S. News and World Report. American Airlines, United Continental and Delta have all accused Qatar Airways, Etihad Airways and Emirates of operating outside the boundaries of "Open Skies" agreements signed in the early 2000s. All three of the Gulf carriers have denied the claims.

In February, Trump told Airline executives that he recognized the pressure being brought by the Gulf carriers, but he wants them to do succeed as well. "They come with big investments, in many cases those investments come from their governments, but they are still big investments," Trump said at the time.

The White House issued a memo in September that was seen by Reuters on Tuesday in which Trump Administration officials said that the U.S. government ""should take action to address the unfair behavior of Gulf carriers" and "seek disciplines on subsidies, transparency and state owned enterprises." If sufficient progress it not made, the recommendation was made for the U.S. to withdraw from the agreement.

There is not even agreement among U.S. carriers about the situation. The Partnership for Fair and Open Skies, which includes Delta, United and America, issued a statement following the meeting saying they support the efforts of the Trump administration "to level the playing field with the Gulf carriers and their massive government subsidies. Their activities are harming American jobs and the U.S. aviation industry and we appreciate that the administration is acting to resolve these issues with the governments of the UAE and Qatar.”

However, the U.S. Airlines for Open Skies Coalition, which is comprised of Atlas Air Worldwide, FedEx, Hawaiian Airlines, and JetBlue Airways, has a different take on the meeting. “The legacy carriers are still unable to show harm, still cannot point to a specific violation of the agreements, and still refuse to go through the established 180-day review that would provide an independent, government assessment of their claims, the Coalition said in a statement released following the meeting. "We are confident further investigation by the Trump administration will show the claims for what they are: a political ploy to protect themselves from competition and limit choice for U.S. travelers.”

ALPA also released a statement following the meeting. “The massive subsidies provided by Qatar and the United Arab Emirates to their state-run airlines kill American jobs, undermine the global aviation market and leave the U.S. a distinct disadvantage when it comes to fair and open competition," the union said. "That is why the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) applauds the Trump administration for announcing today it is taking preliminary action to address these subsidies and ensure a level playing field for all. It is our expectation that this action will lead to the full enforcement of our Open Skies trade agreements, and an end to these unfair trade practices that have hurt the U.S. economy and American workers.”

(Sources: Statements and as cited. Image from file)

FMI: Original Report, openskiescoalition.com, www.openandfairskies.com