The Department of Transportation (DOT) on Wednesday issued an order banning China’s airlines from operating passenger flights to and from the U.S. as of mid-June.
The ban is set to take effect as of June 16, or earlier, depending upon the orders of President Trump.
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The DOT explained that its decision comes as a response to China denying U.S. carriers to resume flights to China as global travel restrictions begin easing amid the coronavirus health crisis.
“Currently, four Chinese carriers and no U.S. carriers operate scheduled passenger flights between the United States and China,” reads the DOT’s statement. “U.S. carriers have asked to resume passenger service, beginning June 1st. The Chinese government’s failure to approve their requests is a violation of our Air Transport Agreement.”
The U.S.-China Air Transport Agreement, which was established in 1980, stipulated that carriers for both countries would be allowed to fly between points in the U.S. and China.
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News of the ban comes nearly two weeks after The Trump administration reportedly accused China of blocking U.S. passenger flights into the country amid coronavirus restrictions.
“China has, over the objections of the U.S. government, impaired the operating rights of U.S. carriers,” Department of Transportation Assistant Secretary Joel Szabat wrote in a letter to Chinese airlines on May 22, according to Forbes. Szabat also ordered four Chinese airlines to submit flight schedules in the middle of the following week to evaluate if the airlines are “contrary to applicable law or adversely affect the public interest.”
The DOT’s order, released on Wednesday, names airlines operated by Air China; Beijing Capital Airlines Co., Ltd.; China Eastern Airlines Corporation Limited; China Southern Airlines Company Limited; Hainan Airlines Holding Co. Ltd.; Sichuan Airlines Co., Ltd.; and Xiamen Airlines.
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The order also states that the three U.S. carriers which suspended their service to China in February (American, United, Delta) had hoped to resume service to the country in June, but those that submitted applications to the Civil Aviation Authority of China (Delta, United) had not been approved.
“The Department will continue to engage our Chinese counterparts so both U.S. and Chinese carriers can fully exercise their bilateral rights. In the meantime, we will allow Chinese carriers to operate the same number of scheduled passenger flights as the Chinese government allows ours,” the DOT’s statement reads.
"The action may go into effect before June 16th, if the President so orders," the DOT adds.
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News of the ban was reported earlier in the day by Reuters, which cited three separate sources who spoke under the condition of anonymity.