Entry Into Force of U.S.-UK Civil Air Transport Agreement

On March 25, the Governments of the United States and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland completed an exchange of diplomatic notes to bring the U.S.-UK Air Transport Agreement (“the Agreement”) into force. Both governments had been applying the Agreement, signed in November 2020, on the basis of comity and reciprocity since January 1, 2021. This Agreement also emphasizes the close ties between our two nations.

The Agreement serves as the basis of United States-United Kingdom air services relations. It includes all the essential elements of Open Skies, such as unrestricted capacity and frequency, open routes, code-sharing opportunities, a liberal charter regime, and market-determined pricing. The Agreement includes expanded “seventh-freedom” traffic rights for all-cargo services. It also includes the UK’s overseas territories and crown dependencies under the terms of this new Agreement.