Australia and the EU have moved a step closer to reaching an historic ‘open skies’ pact to liberalise air travel between the two continents.
Ministers have given their approval for Australia’s Rudd Labour government to negotiate with the European Commission about removing flight restrictions.
Australian transport minister Anthony Albanese said that the move paved the way for a new era of travel between the two zones, delivering greater competition and lower air fares.
“An ‘open skies’ agreement could remove many – if not all – of the existing regulatory limitations on Australian and European airlines operating between our two continents,” he said in a statement.
Any such agreement would resemble the newly-implemented EU-US Open Skies Agreement, which has already resulted in a boost to the number of transatlantic carriers operating out of London Heathrow Airport.
Under current bilateral agreements, Australian airlines are limited to offering thrice-weekly services to key destinations such as Paris.
Despite the outdated restrictions, the EU remains Australia’s largest aviation market, with some 4.5 million passengers travelling between the two continents last year alone.
