Air route authority between the United States and the People's Republic of China
Encyclopedia
There are currently bilateral treaties which govern aviation rights between the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 and the People's Republic of China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...

. Agreements cover both passenger services and cargo services. There is not an "open skies
Open skies
Open skies is an international policy concept which calls for the liberalization of rules and regulations on international aviation industry most specially commercial aviation - opening a free market for the airline industry...

" agreement, which generally refers to an agreement that allows unrestricted flights between countries. The current treaty specifies the number of flights permitted. Due to the highly regulated nature of awards for route authority between the two countries and the strict limits on number of flights, the application process is competitive. U.S. airlines have sought to gain support from local politicians and the general public to influence the U.S. government into awarding to routes.

The United States has liberal aviation agreements with many countries but not the People's Republic of China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...

, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...

, and some South American countries.

Current passenger flights operating

In 2006, there were 10 non-stop flights between the two countries with passenger traffic being 2 million per year.

Four U.S. carriers and three Chinese carriers operate flights between the two countries under the air agreement (not including Hong Kong). United Airlines flies nonstop between Beijing and San Francisco, Chicago, and Washington as well as nonstop Shanghai service from San Francisco, Chicago, and Los Angeles. Delta Air Lines flies between Beijing, Shanghai, and Tokyo with either connections or the same flight numbers continuing to the United States, as well as non-stop flights between Detroit and Shanghai and Beijing. Continental Airlines flies between Beijing and Newark. American Airlines flies between Shanghai and Chicago. Continental flies nonstop between Shanghai and Newark. Delta flies nonstop between Beijing and Seattle. American Airlines flies between Beijing and Chicago. Delta flies between Shanghai and Atlanta after the airline suspended the route in 2009. American flies between Shanghai and Los Angeles.
Following a 1987 directive, six Chinese airlines were formed in 1988 when CAAC
CAAC
CAAC is an acronym which may refer to the following:* Civil Aviation Administration of China, an administrative body of the People's Republic of China* Capital Area Activities Conference, a high school sports league centered around Lansing, Michigan...

, the Chinese airline and government regulatory agency for aviation was split and reorganized. Air China flies non-stop Beijing flights to San Francisco, Los Angeles, and New York. China Eastern flies non-stop Shanghai flights to Los Angeles, New York, and Honolulu. China Southern flies non-stop flights between Guangzhou and Los Angeles. China Southern began service to the United States in August, 1997. Hainan flies nonstop from Beijing to Seattle.

The airlines flying China-United States cooperate in airline alliance and codesharing. The first marketing alliance between airlines of the two countries began on April 26, 1996 between Northwest Airlines and Air China which has since been discontinued. Star Alliance include Continental Airlines ,United Airlines ,and Air China, which signed agreement to join in May, 2006. Northwest, and Delta are members of Skyteam. China Southern joined in August, 2004. American is a member of oneworld. China Eastern codeshares with several oneworld airlines and has expressed an interest in joining. On June 21, 2011, China Eastern officially joined SkyTeam. Participating in airline alliances and codesharing is intended to increase passenger traffic on the airline by allowing reciprocal frequent flyer program benefits and increasing the number of flights that an airline offers, even if some of the flights are clearly operated by another airline.

Starting in late 2007, Mesa Air Group, who operates smaller regional jets in the United States plans to begin operating a joint venture with Shenzhen Airlines. The new joint venture would operate a Beijing based airline flying domestic Chinese routes. The domestic flights are not governed by the air agreement between China and the United States.

Early history

In 1979, diplomatic relations between the People's Republic of China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...

 and the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 were established. Previously, there had been no air service between China and the United States after 1949 although there were flights between the United States and sections of China controlled by the government based in Taipei
Taipei
Taipei City is the capital of the Republic of China and the central city of the largest metropolitan area of Taiwan. Situated at the northern tip of the island, Taipei is located on the Tamsui River, and is about 25 km southwest of Keelung, its port on the Pacific Ocean...

 (Republic of China).

In January 1981, CAAC
Civil Aviation Administration of China
The Civil Aviation Administration of China , formerly the General Administration of Civil Aviation of China , is the aviation authority under the Ministry of Transport of the People's Republic of China. It oversees civil aviation and investigates aviation accidents and incidents...

 and Pan Am began flying between the People's Republic of China and the United States. Northwest Airlines resumed flying to China in 1984. Facing financial troubles, Pan Am sold its Pacific route authority, as well as aircraft and equipment, to United Airlines in 1985 leading to United Airlines operating former Pan Am routes over the Pacific in February, 1986.

Hong Kong, which was previously a British Crown Colony until 1981 and a British dependent territory from 1981–1997, is now a part of the People's Republic of China but has a separate air agreement with the United States. Macau, formerly governed by Portugal but now governed by the People's Republic of China, also has a separate air agreement with the United States. The province of Taiwan is considered to be a part of China by both the People's Republic of China and the Republic of China, but the island is under defacto control by the government based in Taipei, not Beijing. Due to the severing of diplomatic relations with the Republic of China (Taiwan) by the United States in 1978 in order to establish relations with the People's Republic of China and because the mainland government does not control the province of Taiwan, there is currently no air service agreement between the United States concerning the province. However, there is an air service agreement between the American Institute in Taiwan and the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the United States.

Due to the small number of flights, air fares tend to be high between the two countries.

Although the stated goal of both countries is for an open skies agreement, the process of reaching such an agreement has taken several years and has not been completed. Liu Weimin, director of the Aviation Laws Research Centre with the Civil Aviation Management Institute of China, has said "Under the current market situation, local carriers have a hard time competing against global giants such as Continental. That is why US airlines are enthusiastic to fly to China, while Chinese carriers are hesitating to open more flights. For local airlines, more flights may mean more losses if they cannot get enough passengers." There have been reports that the load factors (percentage of seats sold) in business and first class are lower on Chinese carriers compared to U.S. carriers.

Not all of the route authority of the Chinese airlines is used.

Discontinued non-stop service

The first scheduled non-stop flight between the two countries by a U.S. carrier took place on May 1, 1996, between Detroit and Beijing and was operated by Northwest Airlines. Northwest Airlines began Detroit-Shanghai non-stop flights twice a week starting April 6, 2000, before discontinuing non-stop service 18 months later and discontinuing non-stop Detroit-Beijing service in 2002. (the route was later re-instated on July 1, 2011 under the Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines, Inc. is a major airline based in the United States and headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The airline operates an extensive domestic and international network serving all continents except Antarctica. Delta and its subsidiaries operate over 4,000 flights every day...

 brand) Northwest Airlines then became the only airline authorized to fly China that did not offer any nonstop service to that country until it resumed nonstop flights between Detroit and Shanghai on June 1, 2009 (as part of its new parent, Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines, Inc. is a major airline based in the United States and headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The airline operates an extensive domestic and international network serving all continents except Antarctica. Delta and its subsidiaries operate over 4,000 flights every day...

).

In April 2000, United Airlines discontinued Shanghai-Tokyo service and launched its first US-China nonstop service from San Francisco to Shanghai. In June 2000, United Airlines discontinued Beijing-Tokyo service and started non-stop Beijing-San Francisco service. This replacement of services was done because of the restrictions on the number of flights permitted under the 1999 air services agreement. Since then, all China routes serviced by United Airlines are nonstop. United's Beijing-Tokyo service was re-instated on October 26 as a temporary replacement for the Dulles-Beijing nonstop service (which was suspended for the winter season). Currently, United's Dulles-Beijing service operates year-round.

China Eastern began service to San Francisco in 1997 but has since discontinued passenger service to the airport, though cargo flights continue to be operated. Passenger service to Chicago via Seattle has also been discontinued. Several Chinese airlines operated services to Anchorage, primarily as a fuel stop but such stops are no longer operated, in part because of long range aircraft in service.

In 2007, Delta Air Lines won the bid to operate nonstop flights between Atlanta and Shanghai. However, in 2009, only one year after having won the route, Delta suspended the route due to weak customer demand, the struggling US economy, high fuel prices, and the H1N1 flu pandemic. Delta flew its final Atlanta-Shanghai route on September 1, 2009. Delta replaced Northwest on its Detroit-Shanghai service using its Boeing 777 on October 24, 2009. Delta re-instated the Atlanta to Shanghai route on June 5, 2011, operating 2 days a week, as part of the carrier's international expansion for 2011. The route, however, will once again cease effective January 17, 2011 citing poor performance on the route.

1999 Air Services Agreement

Concluded in April 1999, airlines from each country were allowed to increase the number of weekly flights from 27 to 54, including cargo flights. 20 of these flights were designated for all-cargo flights. Each country was allowed to designate one additional airline so that four airlines from each country were allowed to fly between the two countries.

United Airlines gained additional frequencies under this agreement and, in April, 2000, started non-stop Shanghai-San Francisco service.

2004 agreement

A new agreement was signed July 2004

The agreement allowed each country’s carriers to serve any city in the other country. In practice, service between the two countries occurs between three large Chinese cities and a few cities in the U.S. Prior to the agreement, Chinese carriers were limited to 12 U.S. cities, and U.S. passenger carriers to only five Chinese cities. The agreement permitted unlimited code-sharing between U.S. and Chinese airlines, which had previously been limited to certain cities.

At the time of the agreement, there were plans for additional negotiations to begin in 2006 which led to another agreement in 2007.

The 2004 agreement led to the 2005 expansion of flights between the two countries as well as new service by Northwest Airlines from Tokyo to Guangzhou, which began on November 1, 2004, operated using Boeing 757 aircraft. (The route was planned to be resumed on July 6, 2011, by Delta, however, the airline indefinitely postponed the route.) United Airlines began non-stop Chicago–Shanghai flights on October 31, 2004.

2005 expansion

In June, 2005, the U.S. Department of Transportation
United States Department of Transportation
The United States Department of Transportation is a federal Cabinet department of the United States government concerned with transportation. It was established by an act of Congress on October 15, 1966, and began operation on April 1, 1967...

 awarded American Airlines
American Airlines
American Airlines, Inc. is the world's fourth-largest airline in passenger miles transported and operating revenues. American Airlines is a subsidiary of the AMR Corporation and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas adjacent to its largest hub at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport...

 authority to fly between Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...

 and Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...

 as well as authority to Continental Airlines
Continental Airlines
Continental Airlines was a major American airline now merged with United Airlines. On May 3, 2010, Continental Airlines, Inc. and UAL, Inc. announced a merger via a stock swap, and on October 1, 2010, the merger closed and UAL changed its name to United Continental Holdings, Inc...

 to fly between Newark and Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...

.

2006 expansion

In 2006, several U.S. airlines applied for additional route authority that was granted in 2007. The United Airlines
United Airlines
United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees (which includes the entire holding company United Continental...

 application to fly between Dulles International Airport near Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

, and Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...

 was selected. The route started operating on March 25, 2007, using Boeing 747-400
Boeing 747-400
The Boeing 747-400 is a major development and the best-selling model of the Boeing 747 family of jet airliners. While retaining the four-engine wide-body layout of its predecessors, the 747-400 embodies numerous technological and structural changes to produce a more efficient airframe...

 aircraft.

In addition to United
United Airlines
United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees (which includes the entire holding company United Continental...

's application, American Airlines
American Airlines
American Airlines, Inc. is the world's fourth-largest airline in passenger miles transported and operating revenues. American Airlines is a subsidiary of the AMR Corporation and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas adjacent to its largest hub at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport...

, Continental Airlines
Continental Airlines
Continental Airlines was a major American airline now merged with United Airlines. On May 3, 2010, Continental Airlines, Inc. and UAL, Inc. announced a merger via a stock swap, and on October 1, 2010, the merger closed and UAL changed its name to United Continental Holdings, Inc...

 and Northwest Airlines
Northwest Airlines
Northwest Airlines, Inc. was a major United States airline founded in 1926 and absorbed into Delta Air Lines by a merger approved on October 29, 2008, making Delta the largest airline in the world...

 had also applied for route authority.

Continental applied for rights to fly between Newark
Newark, New Jersey
Newark is the largest city in the American state of New Jersey, and the seat of Essex County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Newark had a population of 277,140, maintaining its status as the largest municipality in New Jersey. It is the 68th largest city in the U.S...

, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...

, and Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...

. Northwest applied for the right to fly to Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...

 from Detroit. American's application originally was for non-stop service between Dallas/Fort Worth and Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...

, but changed the application to include an eastbound stop in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...

 after an impasse with pilots regarding work hours on the planned flight.

2007 agreement covering expansion from 2007 to 2009

In April, 2006, the two countries began negotiations for further liberalization of the bilateral agreement. Talks were suspended in August 2006, but later resumed. The United States has stated that suspension of talks was due to an unrelated issue. Unofficial Chinese sources report that there was concern because of a “gap” in Chinese airlines’ ability to compete with U.S. airlines. Negotiations were scheduled to resume in January 2007.

An agreement reached on July 7, 2007, allows nearly unlimited service between the People's Republic of China and Guam
Guam
Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government. Guam is listed as one of 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Special Committee on Decolonization of the United...

 and between the People's Republic of China and the Northern Mariana Islands. These unlimited rights do not include Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...

 or Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...

 flights operated by U.S. airlines but do include those cities for mainland Chinese airlines.

Not including the potential expansion to Guam and Saipan (Northern Mariana Islands), by 2011 the current bilateral between the two countries will expand the number of U.S. airlines flying to China from four to nine airlines and from 54 passenger flights weekly to 249.

Negotiations for an open skies agreement were scheduled to begin not later than March 25, 2010, according to a treaty between the two countries.

For the 2007, 2008, and 2009 awards, the Department of Transportation awarded routes at one time instead of considering one year at a time. United and Delta objected unsuccessfully to have the process separated.

2007 expansion

One award to a new entrant, an airline not currently flying to China, was decided. Delta applied for Atlanta-Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...

 using 777-200ER initially then 777-200LR when they are delivered in 2008. Northwest
Northwest Airlines
Northwest Airlines, Inc. was a major United States airline founded in 1926 and absorbed into Delta Air Lines by a merger approved on October 29, 2008, making Delta the largest airline in the world...

 applied for route authority as a new entrant, claiming that although it currently flies to the People's Republic of China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...

, it does so via Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

 and not non-stop. It envisioned using a 747-400 if awarded the route in 2007 but planned to use a 787 if awarded the route in 2009.

Several sources have noted that before the route authority was granted, Delta was virtually assured of being awarded the route. The DOT awarded the route to Delta on September 25, 2007. Delta announced that it will begin service on March 30, 2008, one of the latest dates that they were allowed to begin. The route was later suspended in September 2009. However, Delta re-instated the route starting June 5, 2011.

2008 expansion

One award for flights between Guangzhou
Guangzhou
Guangzhou , known historically as Canton or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of the Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. Located in southern China on the Pearl River, about north-northwest of Hong Kong, Guangzhou is a key national transportation hub and trading port...

 and the United States was granted. Only United Airlines applied and was granted rights. It planned San Francisco to Guangzhou service using a Boeing 777. However, United delayed the route to June 30, 2010, due to the sudden decrease in international travel.

New entrants

One award was granted to a new entrant airline as stated by the DOT when applications were sought. Hawaiian Airlines
Hawaiian Airlines
Hawaiian Airlines, Inc. is a major airline of the United States. It is the largest airline based in the State of Hawai'i, and is the 11th largest commercial airline in the country. Based in Honolulu CDP, City and County of Honolulu, the airline operates its main hub at Honolulu International...

 has withdrawn its application. US Airways
US Airways
US Airways, Inc. is a major airline based in the U.S. city of Tempe, Arizona. The airline is an operating unit of US Airways Group and is the sixth largest airline by traffic and eighth largest by market value in the country....

 applied for Philadelphia-Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...

 authority using an Airbus A340-300
Airbus A340
The Airbus A340 is a long-range four-engine wide-body commercial passenger jet airliner. Developed by Airbus Industrie,A consortium of European aerospace companies, Airbus is now fully owned by EADS and since 2001 has been known as Airbus SAS. a consortium of European aerospace companies, which is...

, an aircraft that it currently does not operate nor has any firm orders to buy. Maxjet applied for rights between Seattle and Shanghai using an all business class configured Boeing 767-200ER. US Airways was granted rights by the DOT over Maxjet citing more seat availability and greater connecting possibilities with the US Airways bid.

Hainan Airlines
Hainan Airlines
Hainan Airlines Company Limited is an airline headquartered in the HNA Development Building in Haikou, Hainan, People's Republic of China. It is the largest privately-owned air transport company and the fourth-largest airline in terms of fleet size in the People's Republic of China...

 began service from Beijing to Seattle with A330 equipment.

Airlines that already fly between the two countries

Three routes to U.S. carriers that were not new entrants were awarded. There were applications for six routes. Northwest applied for Detroit–Beijing using a Boeing 787
Boeing 787
The Boeing 787 Dreamliner is a long-range, mid-size wide-body, twin-engine jet airliner developed by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. It seats 210 to 290 passengers, depending on the variant. Boeing states that it is the company's most fuel-efficient airliner and the world's first major airliner to use...

 to be granted if it is not award the route using a Boeing 747-400
Boeing 747-400
The Boeing 747-400 is a major development and the best-selling model of the Boeing 747 family of jet airliners. While retaining the four-engine wide-body layout of its predecessors, the 747-400 embodies numerous technological and structural changes to produce a more efficient airframe...

 in 2007. It also applied for a 787 operated Detroit–Shanghai route.

United Airlines applied for Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...

–Shanghai using 747-400 aircraft. Washington
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

–Shanghai is an alternate routing of above application.

American Airlines applied for Chicago–Beijing (to have begun April 26, 2010; which actually launched May 25, 2010 after numerous delays). Continental applied for Newark
Newark, New Jersey
Newark is the largest city in the American state of New Jersey, and the seat of Essex County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Newark had a population of 277,140, maintaining its status as the largest municipality in New Jersey. It is the 68th largest city in the U.S...

–Shanghai using a Boeing 777-200ER
Boeing 777
The Boeing 777 is a long-range, wide-body twin-engine jet airliner manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. It is the world's largest twinjet and is commonly referred to as the "Triple Seven". The aircraft has seating for over 300 passengers and has a range from , depending on model...

 Continental had previously applied for the same route some years earlier in which United was awarded the Washington–Beijing route. Delta applied for Atlanta–Beijing using a Boeing 777
Boeing 777
The Boeing 777 is a long-range, wide-body twin-engine jet airliner manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. It is the world's largest twinjet and is commonly referred to as the "Triple Seven". The aircraft has seating for over 300 passengers and has a range from , depending on model...

.

The American Airlines, Continental Airlines and Northwest Airlines route applications were granted. The DOT cited the United application as "not addressing the broader competitive needs" given that United has approximately half of the flights by U.S. carriers to China. The DOT cited American's OneWorld airline alliance as having less access to the U.S.-China market as one of the factors in its decision.

In a hint of the DOT's decision-making process and preferences, it stated in its report stating its intention to grant Continental and American Airlines route authority that "this tentatively leaves seven frequencies to be awarded ... Delta and Northwest." The DOT stated that Northwest, which already had route authority between Detroit and China but has chosen to fly the route via Tokyo (though it did operate some non-stop flights in the past), was applying for additional Detroit-China authority. Such application was denied in the past due to the limited number of new route authority but that now there is more leeway with more flights permitted by treaty. The DOT selected Detroit–Shanghai over Detroit–Beijing. The DOT noted that Delta was not awarded its route application because it would not have much experience in the Chinese market when the 2009 award was to start, given that it would only begin Atlanta–Shanghai service on March 30, 2008. The Atlanta–Shanghai Delta service was suspended on September 1, 2009, but was re-instated on June 5, 2011; the route, however, will cease once again on January 17, 2011 due to poor loads. Delta also applied to the US DOT to begin nonstop flights between Detroit and Beijing starting July 1, 2011.

New restrictions on sale of route authority by U.S. carriers

The DOT also announced, along with its 2007-2009 route authority awards, that route authority must be operated for five years before it could be sold. Previously, the required period was one year.

2010 expansion

DOT approved the requests for a new route between Shanghai and Los Angeles from American Airlines and United Airlines at the end of 2010. Also Delta has decided to reactivate its Shanghai - Atlanta route. Delta is also granted a new route between Beijing and Detroit.
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