A Level Playing Field for "Open Skies" ─ The Need for Consistent Aviation Regulation

This book examines the events that have reshaped the international aviation industry between 1992 and 2012. It critically analyzes the major developments and the regulatory responses and highlights some of the incompatible and disjointed regulations that are in effect at either end of international routes. The author proposes that Australia, Canada, the European Union (EU), New Zealand and the United States (US) form an international organization, to be known as the Open Skies International Aviation Block (OSIAB). OSIAB would be based on expanding the membership of the US-EU Joint Committee foreseen in the 2007 US-EU Open Skies Agreement and expanding its scope to cover every aspect of the regulation of international commercial aviation. The author further argues that such a forum is necessary to ensure that regulations in different countries are aligned so that competitive distortions potentially caused by regulatory disharmony are minimized, thus allowing the international airline industry to compete on the level international playing field that so many international agreements have promised to create. This book is aimed at scholars and practitioners in the field of (international) aviation regulation. About the author: Peter Paul Fitzgerald is a Member of the Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) and is an internationally-recognized expert in aviation law. He taught aviation law at McGill University's Institute of Air and Space Law and Chicago's DePaul University College of Law and published extensively on the topic. Dr Fitzgerald holds a doctorate in Law at McGill University's Institute of Air and Space Law. He is a Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society and also a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport.