Air Transport

India and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations have agreed to hold talks on a proposed Open Skies air services agreement removing all restrictions on passenger and cargo flights.

The 10-member ASEAN group has been talking up air services liberalisation initiatives for some time and agreed at its last meeting of transport ministers in November to move forward with Open Skies talks with India.

India's Ministry of Civil Aviation says talks are due to open in the first half of 2009. The Indian government has in recent years been progressively liberalising its previously restrictive air services regime.

"ASEAN and India agree to work towards concluding an agreement based on the Open Skies principles, covering both air freight and passenger services", it says. It adds an agreement would allow for multiple airline designations, unlimited route, frequency and capacity schedules, and full exercise of third, fourth and fifth freedom traffic rights, for airlines from India and all ASEAN member nations.

The 10 ASEAN members are Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

At their transport ministers' meeting in November the group's members also agreed as expected to move forward with a long-planned liberalisation of air services within their own region.

Under their approved schedule, a full liberalisation of air freight services within the region will take effect before the end of 2008, along with a full liberalisation of third and fourth freedom rights for passenger services between capital cities. Initiatives also call for member nations to allow fifth freedom, or beyond, services through capital cities by 2010, with the aim being a full open skies regime by 2015.