ABSTRACT
In November 2002 a judgment by the European Court of Justice was to herald the next major phase in the normalisation of the airline business. At the start of the twenty-first century, despite the gradual liberalisation which had taken place in the 25 years following the inauguration of President Carter in 1977, there were still many clouds in the so-called open skies. The significance of the European Court of Justice’s decision was that it set in motion a process that over the following five to ten years or so is expected to clear away some, if not all, of the darkest clouds. Why does one talk of clouds when so much has been achieved?
