US Airline Employees Rally For Open Skies

Is there strength in numbers? The Partnership For Open & Fair Skies sure hopes so.The Partnership serves as the lobby group for American, Delta and United airlines, as well as several aviation unions and organizations. Continuing their fight against the three major Middle East Gulf carriers, the Partnership alleges Emirates, Etihad and Qatar airlines have taken more than $50 billion in government subsidies, thereby violating the Open Skies Agreements. But there has been little movement during the past two years by either the Obama or Trump administrations to re-open discussions with the United Arab Emirates and Qatar governments regarding the situation, despite numerous letters and outreach. At a press conference on Capitol Hill, airline workers were joined Wednesday by U.S. Representatives Tom Emmer (R-Minn.) and Brenda Lawrence (D-Mich.) to highlight the threat of unchecked Gulf carrier expansion.