POST-WAR AVIATION

Greymouth Evening Star, 2 November 1944, Page 6

POST-WAR AVIATION

CHICAGO'CONFSRENCE OPENS. NEW YORK, November 1. “The main controversy facing the delegates of 50 nations to the international air conference, opening in Chicago to-day, concerns , the powers to be granted to the international air authority which is expected to materialise from the conference,” says the “New York Times” correspondent m Chicago. . “Washington strongly opposes the London theory that Ihe international body should have power to allocate routes and frequencies of services, maintaining that arbitrary limits must not be imposed on the amount of air traffic in which American companies shall engage. It is .argued that the United States developed the bulk of pre-war international air traffic and that therefore post-war trade should not be split up for,the benefit of other nations which lagged behind. The United States delegation favours the world-wide establishment of routes, open, to all peaceful nations on a basis of traffic needs. It also favours limiting the powers of an international authority to technical matters such as the exchange of weather and safety information. “The United States accepts the principle under which American, aeroplanes will not compete foi’ business inside foreign countries, and foreign lines cannot, compete for traffic inside the United States. The Americans recognise that the British and others fear United States post-war competition resulting from the tremendous impetus the American'aviation industry has received from the war, and from America’s unequalled productive capacity. They reply that American manufacturers are eager to sell transport aeroplanes to other countries to enable them to compete with American airlines. "■ Moreover, the United States will have a surplus of two-en-ffined war transports available . for foreign, countries. The American delegation emphasises the reciprocal nature of its proposals, pointing out that the United States is not seeking rights which it is unwilling to extend to others. Any country permitting American aeroplanes to land on its soil will be given landing rights in the United States. , “Officials regard Russia’s reiusal to attend as less important than it appears on the surface. They point out that Russia is off the main air routes, and thus could not gain much from the conference. Russia might lose by agreeing to let foreign aeroplanes fly over her territory, or by opposing such an agreement.”