The chairman of Japan Airlines, in Atlanta last week to receive an award from The Japan-America Society of Georgia, waited until his return to Tokyo to criticize aviation pacts which he said are biased toward the U.S.
Susumu Yamaji, chairman of Japan’s largest international carrier, said agreements signed after World War II allow U.S. carriers to operate more routes than their foreign partners.
The Clinton Administration now holds, he said, that because foreign countries don’t have significant domestic markets to offer in exchange, the U.S. should be entitled to fly to third countries through their foreign partners’ services.
Mr. Yamaji’s criticisms join a chorus of similar complaints from other countries including the United Kingdom, Germany and some Asian countries. Meanwhile, Ronald W. Allen, Delta Air Line’s chairman, president and chief executive officer, proposed this week that the U.S. scrap its current aviation treaties and adopt a comprehensive approach to the marketplace. He cited Delta’s disputes with British and German governments over access to Frankfurt’s airport and London’s Heathrow as examples that the “existing patchwork of bilateral accords governing international aviation ‘was conceived 50 years ago as a shield against competition’ and survives ‘as the weapon of choice for countries intent on protectionism.’”