Reps. Dan Lipinski (D-IL), Robert Dold (R-IL), Paul Cook (R-CA), Tom Emmer (R-MN), Steve Israel (R-NY) and Frank Pallone (D-NY) recently requested a meeting with U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx to discuss protecting U.S.airlines and their workers from unfair competition coming from government-subsidized Persian Gulf carriers.
”Contrary to the goals of Open Skies policy, Qatar, Emirates, and Etihad airlines have received $42 billion in subsidies and unfair benefits from their governments, flouting the good faith inherent in these international treaties and undermining the principles of open competition," the members wrote. "Through the docket submission process, additional evidence has surfaced that the Gulf carriers’ entry into the United States is causing significant harm to the U.S. aviation industry and the hundreds of thousands of workers it supports. Instead of stimulating demand, the subsidies and unfair benefits are allowing the Gulf carriers to take away passengers from domestic carriers, hurting service to cities across the country."
Earlier in the year, the bipartisan group joined 256 colleagues in the House in sending a letter to the Department of Transportation urging consultations with the governments of Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to address the subsidized capacity that their state-owned airlines – Qatar Airways, Etihad Airways and Emirates – are deploying to the U.S., in direct violation of U.S. Open Skies policy.
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