Andrew Mollet/TOKYO Kevin O'Toole/LONDON
Japan and the USA have agreed to make Tokyo the venue for their first full negotiations on a new passenger transport bilateral accord on 4-6 August, with the aim of producing a deal in September.
Until now, the two sides have been arguing over the basis for talks, with the USA holding out for a full open-skies deal, but Japan is pushing for an interim agreement to "equalise" the existing bilateral.
The deadlock has been eased by indications from the USA that it is prepared to accept a "transitional period" running for three to four years, provided that Japan works towards open skies.
A key Japanese objective is to cap beyond rights between the two countries, which have allowed United Airlines and Northwest Airlines to build extensive hub operations in Japan, but which limit Japan Airlines (JAL) to only a single onward flight to Brazil. All Nippon Airways (ANA) wants to be named as a second Japanese incumbent in the bilateral.
The talks are also expected to resolve the dispute over Japan's ban on beyond rights for cargo flights being pursued by FedEx. Japanese airline sources say that Tokyo has been holding out on signing a deal to keep pressure on the USA for passenger talks.
The Japanese are understood to be ready to allow FedEx beyond rights, provided that freight picked up in Japan makes up less than 50% of total revenues (rather than weight) per flight.
Agreement on open skies is expected to pave the way to partnerships between Japanese and US carriers being forged.
JAL has a long-standing relationship with American Airlines, which it is keen to develop. ANA has been linked to talks with United, while Northwest has a deal on frequent-flyer programmes with Japan Air System.
Source: Flight International
