Outcome of IATA Istanbul Summit

On 26 October 2008 the International Air Transport Association (IATA) issued a Press Release on the outcome of its Agenda for Freedom Summit in Istanbul (see previous post). The opening Remarks of IATA Director General Giovanni Bisignani and the Summary of the Chairman, Jeff Shane, are also available.

Three key outcomes are stated to have emerged:

• The participants asked IATA to continue to facilitate this discussion with a second meeting in early 2009 to turn the discussion into action.
• They also asked IATA to facilitate the development of a multi-lateral statement of policy that would be a powerful tool expressing the common thinking and approach of the group of states.
• Finally, the group agreed to spread best practices in liberalisation by making more openly available to all states the most liberal agreements that are being negotiated.

On 30 October 2008 The Economist carried a story on the outcomes.

US Department of Justice clears Delta takeover of Northwest

On 29 October 2008 the Antitrust Division of the United States Department of Justice issued a statement in effect clearing the way for the merger of Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines. The US$2.6 billion all-stock takeover has created the largest airline in the world. Reuters reported on the news.

EU Council finalises Directive to include aviation in ETS

On 24 October 2008 the Council of the European Union approved a directive bringing into law the inclusion of aviation in the European Union's Emissions Trading Scheme. A press release announced the decision (see previous post).

The United States Ambassador to the European Union, Kristen Silverberg, has written a letter to the European Commission dated 30 October 2008 reiterating US concerns.

Press releases reacting to the Council decision came from IATA, the Association of European Airlines (AEA) and the ELFAA.

EurActiv.com has a "links dossier" providing access to background on the aviation and emissions trading issue.

Political Party Transport Policies for the New Zealand Election

On 31 October 2008 the NZ Herald carried a story by Mathew Dearnaley headed "Transport a bandwagon everyone's happy to ride" and a table on the transport policies of the parties contesting the New Zealand General Election on 8 November 2008.

Policy.net.nz has a page on party transport policies.

Treemaps

Panopticon has a fascinating demonstration gallery of its data visualisation software. As well as the financial data that one might expect and a few treemaps that you might not expect, for those interested in aviation there is a treemap of airliner crashes covering the period 1968-2008. This can be varied by airline and by aircraft manufacturer. The data source used is AirDisaster.Com.

Aerolineas Argentinas to be expropriated?

Reuters is carrying a report dated 23 October 2008 that the Argentine Government is considering expropriating Aerolineas Argentinas. The government had been in talks to buy the airline (see previous post).

The airline is unusual in that it is foreign owned and controlled by Spanish interests, the Marsans group, probably giving many of Argentina's bilateral air services agreement partners the right to refuse to grant it operating authorisation. To my knowledge none have done so.

Air New Zealand reviewing services beyond RAR, TBU and APW to LAX

Television New Zealand and the Samoa Observer are carrying reports dated 26 October 2008 that Air New Zealand is seeking government subsidises if it is to continue its weekly services beyond Nuku'alofa, Apia and Rarotonga to Los Angeles.

The non-stop service between Rarotonga and Los Angeles is already subsidised by the Cook Islands government.

EC's Calleja addresses IAC

Against the background of the resumed air transport negotiations between the European Commission and the United States, on 23 September 2008 Daniel Calleja, the Director of Air Transport at the European Commission delivered a speech to the International Aviation Club in Washington DC.

Jetstar's New Zealand aspirations

On 24 October 2008 The Australian carried a report by Steve Creedy quoting the new Chief Executive of Qantas-subsidiary Jetstar, Bruce Buchanan, about the airline's aspirations for New Zealand operations.

It is becoming increasingly clear that the Boeing B787, with its size/range combinations, is likely to play a major part in New Zealand's aviation future.

Global Financial Crisis Impacting on New Zealand Visitor Arrivals

For some months now I have been getting rather gloomy about New Zealand's international visitor numbers. Having been hit by a supply shock in the form of rising jet fuel prices, airlines are now being hit by a demand shock and those that plan to survive will need to make some tough decisions. Those people that wish to see aviation emissions reduced and aircraft grounded may be in luck the way things are going, in the short term at least.

The September 2008 New Zealand International Visitor Arrivals:

• Australia 82,317 down 2.6%
• UK 10,580 down 5.3%
• USA 9,131 down 11.6%
• Canada 2,139 up 12.0%
• China 5,497 down 33.2%
• Korea 4,577 down 30.7%
• Japan 6,486 down 22.1%

The total number was down by 6.6%.

Will the recent dramatic fall in the value of the NZ$ start to have a positive impact in some of these markets?

The NZ Ministry of Tourism does a good monthly analysis of this data in a Commentary and its Tourism Leading Indicators Monitor. I look at the provisional numbers that come through every Friday and at my work we also have the raw data direct from Statistics NZ. The NZ Ministry of Transport is the only one that gets the airline-by-airline statistics as, unlike in Australia for example, here they are regarded as commercially sensitive.

Fuel hedging by Air New Zealand

As well as hedging their foreign exchange exposure, volatility in the price of jet fuel leads to airlines hedging to achieve a degree of certainty about their costs going forward. Air New Zealand publishes its position here on its web site every quarter.

The latest announcement has just been covered in a story dated 24 October 2008 by Denise McNabb from The Independent. Given the dramatic fall in the price of oil, it is quite interesting. There have recently been some painful losses for the latest quarter announced by airlines in the United States as a result of having to mark to market their fuel hedging.

A data series and graphs on the Singapore jet fuel spot price are available from the US Energy Information Administration (see previous post). I have installed a widget giving the price of crude oil in US$ on the left hand side of this weblog.

Deadline for Canada-EU air services negotiations

On 17 October 2008 during the visit of the French and European Commission Presidents to Quebec City the Prime Minister of Canada Stephen Harper announced that he "... welcomed the decisive progress toward the negotiation of a comprehensive air transport agreement between Canada and the EU. He, along with EU leaders, directed negotiators to conclude the agreement by November 30, 2008. This agreement will improve connections between markets and create new opportunities for the air sector."

Back on 29 May 2008 the Canadian Minister of Transport noted that there had by then been three rounds of negotiations. The first round was held in Brussels on 27-28 November 2007 (Canadian statement)(see previous post).

US domestic air transport deregulation 30 years later

This week saw the thirtieth anniversary of the economic deregulation of the US domestic airline industry under the Carter Administration.

To mark the occasion on 23 October 2008 the Antitrust Division of the US Department of Justice held a Workshop on Airline Competition at which some of the leading academics in the airline field presented papers (HT to Aviation Law Prof Blog).

Also marking the occasion were three articles complete with commentaries in the Summer 2008 issue of the Houston Law Review and a short article, Why You Hate to Fly, by Evan Sparks in The American magazine.

Bill Swelbar from MIT has four postings on his weblog:

• Economic Impact of Commercial Aviation
• Triangulating Southwest to the Point of Indifference
  
• Management and Labor
• Stakeholder Winners and Losers NEW
  

The second posting finishes with an intriguing comment: "In the future, look to the horizon for the new competitive battleground. It will be more about Auckland than Amarillo. It really will."

To cap it off Kieran Daly noted that, one of the biggest beneficiaries of deregulation, Southwest had just announced its first quarterly loss in 17 years as a result of having to mark to market its fuel hedging.

I remember in the 1980s reading that the airline industry was proving to be less contestable than the advocates of economic deregulation had thought it would be. The industry certainly has had a bumpy ride from a financial perspective but consumers have enjoyed huge benefits. I continue to have an open mind as to whether the economic policy advisers and regulators, of which I am one here in New Zealand, have it right. The above links point to plenty of food for thought.

IATA Agenda for Freedom Summit in Istanbul

IATA is meeting back in Istanbul on 25-26 October 2008, this time with officials from 15 governments (Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, the European Commission, India, Mauritius, Morocco, Panama, Singapore, Switzerland, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, the United States of America and Vietnam) in an Agenda for Freedom Summit to discuss ways of freeing up the government-imposed economic restrictions that international airlines operate under.

The Baltic Dry Index sinks

On 24 October 2008 Bloomberg reported that the Baltic Dry Index (BDI) has fallen 90% since May 2008 (see chart). On 16 October 2008 the Financial Times carried a story on this drop.

The BDI measures the cost of chartering large bulk ships and is regarded as a leading indicator of global economic activity. Back on 24 October 2003 an article by Daniel Gross in Slate described it as the best economic indicator you've never heard of.

With such developments as this and the fall in the price of oil maybe the world is getting smaller again (see previous post).

Gongoozling

An article published by The Economist on 18 September 2008 increased my vocabulary. I had never come across the word Gongoozler before. It seems that it is the canal equivalent of a train or plane spotter.

These days what is left of the UK canal network is maintained by British Waterways. I have been to the National Waterways Museum in Gloucester.

The US concludes "open skies" agreements with Armenia, Laos and Vietnam

On 7 October 2008 the US Department of Transportation announced that the United States had concluded a new "open skies" agreement with Armenia, and "open skies" with Vietnam with respect to cargo-only air services. An "open skies" agreement with Laos was announced by DoT on 3 October 2008.

This brings to 94 the number of "open skies" relationships that the United States has reached. Note that ICAO has 190 Contracting States so the US is now just under half way through all the possible "open skies" relationships that it could have.

A sea of red - following the US stock markets

Some time ago I linked from my Economics home page to the SmartMoney.com Map of the Market. It is what is called a treemap and shows a map of US equities with the area for an individual company varying by market capitalisation and the colour by whether the stock has risen or dropped in price.

I recently came across a much more comprehensive data visualisation source, FINVIZ.com (HT to information aesthetics). Currently it presents a gloomy picture but perhaps points to some buying opportunities for those that are contrarian. To quote Warren Buffett in an opinion piece in The Times on 19 October 2008: "Be greedy when other are fearful and be fearful when others are greedy."

The market capitalisations of the major US airlines are now so small that they are actually quite hard to find on this visualisation tool - do not expect to find them in the S&P 500 view - look in the Full view in the Services block on the right near the bottom under "Maj".

Interactive graphic of the current bear market

The New York Times has an excellent interactive graphic dated 11 October 2008 comparing the current bear market with past ones in terms of severity and length as measured by the S&P 500 and Robert J. Shiller from Yale.

Plane Truths report from new economics foundation

On 27 September 2008 the new economics foundation and World Development Movement published their 60 page report Plane Truths: Do the economic arguments for aviation growth really fly? A summary statement talks about three "fossil-fuelled fantasies".

Fiji to join the PIASA

On 7 October 2008 the Fiji Interim Government announced that Fiji intends to join the Pacific Islands Air Services Agreement (PIASA)(see previous post).

Given Fiji's central geographic location in the South Pacific and its past concerns about air services liberalisation, this is a significant announcement.

Canada reaches "Blue Sky" agreement with Dominican Republic

Canadian Ministers Cannon and Fortier announced on 5 September 2008 that Canada has reached a "Blue Sky" air transport agreement with the Dominican Republic.

India to sign new air services agreement with the Maldives

On 18 September 2008 the Indian Government announced that it had approved the signing of a new air services agreement (ASA) with the Maldives. The draft ASA includes a move to multiple designation and permits third-country code-sharing but retains the traditional "substantial ownership and effective control" provision.

Airline perspectives on Philippines air transport policy

On 28 September 2008 the Manila Times carried a special report quoting the views of Philippine Airlines and Cebu Pacific about international air services policy and negotiations.

The two Congos sign a new air services agreement

Afrique en ligne carries a report dated 25 September 2008 on the signing of a new air services agreement between DR Congo and Congo-Brazzaville.

Common Values - Why Kiwis and Canucks get along so well?

The World Values Survey web site has an interesting Cultural Map of the World (see below) by Political Studies Professors Ronald Inglehart and Christian Welzel that organises countries by the values their people hold.


This seems to provide a partial explanation as to why I, as a New Zealander, feel more at home in Canada than England or even Australia and enjoy visiting Switzerland and Austria.

What would be fascinating to see is such a map done for the values held by people in individual states in the USA, particularly California and New York compared with the Mid West and Deep South.

I have seen a similar map graphing the relationship between trust and economic performance by Harrison and Huntington (2000) in "The Origin of Wealth" by Eric Beinhocker (Figure 18-1 on page 433 - also see previous post).

Most of New Zealand's air services agreements are now online

I have been through the New Zealand Treaty Series documents currently available at http://www.nzlii.org/nz/other/mfat/NZTS/ and extracted out the links to those on air services (see recent post) and civil aviation. Clearly what has been posted is a work in progress with a significant number of air services-related treaties still to be added (notably those covering New Zealand's air services relationships with European countries, the most recent ones and the MALIAT, which has its own web site) and there is no indication of the current status of individual treaties - many have been superseded.

Also take heed of the usual note of caution - to fully understand the opportunities available to international airlines in an air services relationship you also need to look at the related Memorandum of Understanding. In New Zealand these are held by the Ministry of Transport and are not available on the web.

On my home pages I have a list of virtually all the air services agreements (but not the amendments) with their year of signature and that gives some indication of those treaties that are no longer current. The following treaties are in date order of publication in the Treaty Series.

New Zealand Air Services Treaties Online

Exchange of Notes between New Zealand and France constituting an Agreement regarding the Exchange of Air Traffic Rights in the South Pacific [1949] NZTS 9

Air Transport Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of the French Republic [1968] NZTS 3

Exchange of Letters between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of France extending the Air Transport Agreement of 9 November 1967 [1971] NZTS 17

Agreement between New Zealand and Japan for Air Services, with Exchange of Notes [1980] NZTS 7

Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of the Republic of Nauru concerning Air Services, with Route Schedule [1980] NZTS 10

Exchange of Notes constituting an Agreement to amend the 1961 Air Services Agreement between New Zealand and Australia [1982] NZTS 7

Exchange of Notes constituting an Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of the Commonwealth of Australia amending the Agreement relating to Air Services of 25 July 1961 [1983] NZTS 19

Exchange of Notes amending the Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of Western Samoa for Air Services between and beyond their Respective Territories of 23 June 1978 [1984] NZTS 16

Exchange of Letters between the Government of the Republic of Nauru and the Government of New Zealand constituting an Agreement to Amend the Air Services Agreement 1980 [1984] NZTS 17

Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of Canada on Air Transport, with Annex and Exchange of Notes [1985] NZTS 4

Agreement between New Zealand and the Argentine Republic for Air Services [1985] NZTS 5

Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of the Cook Islands concerning Air Services [1986] NZTS 9

Exchange of Letters constituting an Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of the Republic of Nauru to amend the Route Schedule of the Air Services Agreement of 5 August 1980 [1987] NZTS 20

Air Services Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of the Kingdom of Thailand, with Annex [1987] NZTS 23

Air Transport Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of the Republic of Indonesia, with Annex [1988] NZTS 4

Exchange of Letters constituting an Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of the Cook Islands amending the Agreement concerning Air Services [1988] NZTS 8

Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of the Republic of Vanuatu concerning Air Services (with Annex) [1989] NZTS 4

Exchange of Notes constituting an Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of Japan amending the Agreement for Air Services [1989] NZTS 5

Exchange of Notes constituting an Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of the Kingdom of Thailand Amending the Air Services Agreement [1989] NZTS 6

Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of Solomon Islands concerning Air Services (with Annex) [1990] NZTS 2

Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of Niue concerning Air Services [1990] NZTS 3

Exchange of Notes constituting an Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland amending the Agreement concerning Air Services [1991] NZTS 1

Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of Hong Kong concerning Air Services [1991] NZTS 7

Exchange of Notes constituting an Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of the Republic of Fiji amending the Agreement between New Zealand and Fiji concerning Air Services of 26 April 1979 [1992] NZTS 5

Exchange of Notes constituting an Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of Thailand to Amend the Air Services Agreement, as amended in 1989 [1992] NZTS 16

Air Transport Agreement between the Government of the Russian Federation and the Government of New Zealand [1993] NZTS 2

Exchange of Letters constituting an Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of Japan concerning Amendments to the 1980 Air Services Agreement [1993] NZTS 8

Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of the Republic of Korea for Air Services between and beyond their Respective Territories (with annex) [1993] NZTS 11

Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of the People's Republic of China relating to Civil Air Transport [1993] NZTS 14

Exchange of Letters amending the Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of Western Samoa for Air Services, as Amended by Exchange of Notes of 2 July 1984, and further amended by Exchange of Notes of 31 August 1990 (with Annex) [1993] NZTS 16

Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of Papua New Guinea on Air Services [1994] NZTS 2

Exchange of Notes constituting an Agreement amending the 1978 Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of Western Samoa for Air Services between and beyond their Respective Territories (with Annex) [1994] NZTS 7

Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of the Sovereign Democratic Republic of Fiji on Air Services [1994] NZTS 27

Air Transport Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of the Republic of Chile [1995] NZTS 15

Exchange of Letters between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of Japan amending the Agreement for Air Services of 1980 [1995] NZTS 20

Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of Macau on Air Services [1996] NZTS 8

Exchange of Notes between the Government of Hong Kong and the Government of New Zealand amending the Air Services Agreement of 22 February 1991 [1996] NZTS 20

Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of the Republic of India relating to Air Services [1997] NZTS 10

Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of the Republic of South Africa on Air Services (with route schedule) [1997] NZTS 13

Air Services Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of the Republic of Singapore [1997] NZTS 14

Air Transport Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of the United States of America [1997] NZTS 19

Exchange of Letters Constituting an Amendment to the Agreement between New Zealand and Japan for Air Services signed at Auckland on 18 January 1980 [1998] NZTS 6

Exchange of Letters amending the Route Schedule of the Air Services Agreement between the Republic of Argentina and New Zealand done 13 December 1985 [1998] NZTS 8

Air Services Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of Malaysia [1998] NZTS 9

Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of the Federative Republic of Brazil on Air Services, with Annex [1998] NZTS 16

Air Services Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of His Majesty the Sultan and Yang-Di-Peertuan of Brunei Darussalam [1999] NZTS 5

Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of the United Arab Emirates on Air Services [1999] NZTS 22

Air Services Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of the Cook Islands [2000] NZTS 1

Exchange of Notes between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of the Republic of Indonesia constituting an Agreement amending the Air Transport Agreement of 27 May 1988 [2000] NZTS 12

Air Services Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of Ireland [2000] NZTS 14

Air Services Agreement between the Government of the United Mexican States and the Government of New Zealand [2000] NZTS 22

Air Services Agreement between New Zealand and the Kingdom of Denmark [2001] NZTS 2

Air Services Agreement between New Zealand and the Kingdom of Norway [2001] NZTS 3

Air Services Agreement between New Zealand and the Kingdom of Sweden [2001] NZTS 4

Air Services Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of the Kingdom of Tonga [2002] NZTS 1

Air Transport Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Austrian Federal Government [2002] NZTS 6

Exchange of Notes to Amend the Agreement Between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of Japan Relating to Air Services [2002] NZTS 56

Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of Australia Relating to Air Services [2003] NZTS 13

Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam on Air Services [2004] NZTS 7

Civil Aviation-Related Treaties Online

Australian - New Zealand Agreement 1944 [1944] NZTS 1 – note paragraphs 17 to 23.

Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of Western Samoa concerning Civil Aviation, with Annex [1973] NZTS 3

Exchange of Letters between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of Fiji constituting an Agreement concerning the Contribution by the Government of New Zealand toward the Improvement in the Financial Situation and in the Reorganisation of Air Pacific Ltd [1975] NZTS 11

Exchange of Notes amending the Agreement of 20 March 1970 relating to Certificates of Air Worthiness for Imported Aircraft [1979] NZTS 10

Agreement on Civil Aviation between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of the Cook Islands [1986] NZTS 6

Exchange of Letters constituting an Agreement between the Government of New Zealand and the Government of Niue relating to Civil Aviation [1986] NZTS 10

Air Vanuatu restructuring?

The Government of Vanuatu still has a web site up for the proposed restructuring of Air Vanuatu. Expressions of Interest were due by 7 March 2008. I have not seen any progress reports.

The same consultants, International Finance Corporation (a member of the World Bank Group), advised the Government of Samoa on the future of Polynesian Airlines which lead to its downsizing and the creation of Polynesian Blue in 2005.

Japan negotiates new air services arrangements with Singapore

The Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) announced on 19 September 2008 that Japan and Singapore have reached agreement on expanded air services arrangements. This included an expanded exchange of fifth freedom rights and a major capacity increase for Singaporean airlines into Tokyo that will also allow services into Haneda airport. The negotiations took place in Singapore on 17-18 September.

Australia and Bangladesh negotiate new air services arrangements

On 27 August 2008 the Australian Minister for Infrastructure, Hon Anthony Albanese, announced that Australia has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Bangladesh that will provided for air services between the two countries by their airlines.

Oceanic Voyages report from the ADB

Last year the Asian Development Bank (ADB) based in Manila published a three-volume report, Oceanic Voyages: Aviation and Shipping in the Pacific Region. The report is full of case studies and is now available online.

The focus is on the international transport challenges facing the Pacific Islands with their small markets and vast distances. The aviation volume was drafted by the Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation and the shipping volume was drafted by Meyrick and Associates.

Aviation reports from the US Government Accountability Office

Amongst the many recent reports and testimony produced by the United States Government Accountability Office (US GAO - described as the investigative arm of Congress) there are a couple that I found to be of particular interest:

• AIRLINE INDUSTRY - Potential Mergers and Acquisitions Driven by Financial and Competitive Pressures from July 2008 (.pdf, 51 pages)

The focus is on the US domestic air transport market but the report is of wider relevance.

• AVIATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT - NextGen and Research and Development Are Keys to Reducing Emissions and Their Impact on Health and Climate from May 2008 (.pdf, 37 pages)

The GAO notes that its is "... currently undertaking ... a study of the EU emissions trading system and its potential impact on U.S. airlines, and other issues relating to aviation and climate change."

A couple of years ago the GAO commented on the idea of reregulating the US airline industry:

• AIRLINE DEREGULATION - Reregulating the Airline Industry Would Likely Reverse Consumer Benefits and Not Save Airline Pensions from June 2006 (.pdf, 44 pages)
  

Reasons why The End of Aviation is not nigh

In response to the article that appeared in New Republic, on 1 September 2008 Kieran Daly posted on his Unusual Attitude weblog five reasons why not (see previous post).

New Zealand National Freight Demands Study released

On 18 September 2008 a National Freight Demands Study was released. The study gives a comprehensive picture of the movement of goods around New Zealand and should provide a sounder basis for transport policy and planning.

Air Pacific review hearings

In stories on 2 September and 5 September 2008 the Fiji Times reported that task force hearings on Air Pacific are under way.

On 1 August 2008 the Office of the Attorney General announced that around 30 public submissions had been received.

What the task force is interested in was outlined in a call for submissions issued by the Fiji Government (see previous post).

APEC Port Services Network

The APEC Port Services Network now has its own web site that carries industry news.

Plan for air traffic management progress in Europe

A new Flight Efficiency Plan (.pdf) released on 9 September 2008 by IATA, Eurocontrol and CANSO is aimed at reducing aviation fuel consumption within Europe.

The Plan gives some quantification of potential emissions reductions but could have been clearer in summarising the total reductions thought to be achievable.

Canada's treaties

There is now a new web site for Canada's treaties, including its air transport agreements - search under the subject "Air" (see previous post). It is maintained by the Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade.

Venezuela-United States air services dispute

On 12 September 2008 Aviation Week carried a story about a developing dispute between Venezuela and the United States. An issue is the interpretation of the 1953 bilateral Air Transport Agreement between the two countries.

Back on 24 February 2006 USA Today reported on a previous related dispute.

The price of jet fuel

With the price of oil back below US$100 per barrel, today I completed the following graph. I was particularly interested to see what the picture was with respect to monthly movements in the price of jet fuel measured in New Zealand dollars.

I used monthly jet fuel spot prices from the Energy Information Administration of the US Department of Energy (see previous post). The exchange rate data set I used came from the Reserve Bank of New Zealand.