U.S.-China Aviation Talks Stalled over Airport Access

As the United States raise fear and concern that  its airlines will be given less attractive time slots for take-off and landing than their Chinese counterpart, the talks to ease limits on flights between the United States and China's gateway cities have stalled.

In exploratory talks held in May in Washington, details of which have not previously been reported, China offered to permit more flights to and from Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou while lowering caps for other domestic cities, U.S. officials said.

The talks, the first in four years, ended with the U.S. side refusing to pursue formal negotiations until China presents plans to reform what the United States calls an opaque allocation system that tends to give big Chinese state carriers the best time slots, the U.S. officials told Reuters in a telephone interview.

A senior Chinese aviation official said the U.S. was dragging its feet.

"In the past, the Chinese side was not as enthusiastic as the Americans when it came to market liberalization because we didn't need that many flights," the source told Reuters. "But it's the other way around now."

Washington has made clear the ball is in Beijing's court and is waiting for the Chinese side to respond, one person said. It has encouraged China to follow guidelines from the International Air Transport Association (IATA) to accommodate carriers despite congestion.

Officials from both countries spoke on condition of anonymity. China's aviation regulator did not respond to requests for comment.

While there is interest in a new bilateral air services pact, industry experts say an 'Open Skies' agreement, which would remove market restrictions and allow airlines to coordinate capacity and pricing if they have government approval, is likely years away.