ABSTRACT
Privatization, competition, and globalization are trends fuelled by economic and political forces that will ultimately prevail. This chapter focuses on how the situation played out in Europe, not just after the recession triggered by the First Gulf War but also after 9/11, was crucial for Europe and the emergence of a model fit for purpose for a truly global aviation market. It explores the areas which lie more in the technical than the commercial sphere, but nevertheless have significant economic consequences and are important for the creation of a fully globalized airline industry. They include most importantly air traffic control (ATC), allocation of scarce airport take-off and landing slots, and the bourgeoning impact of aviation-generated pollution. The chapter also focuses on the accelerating success of US Open-skies policy. The chapter also explores the US-EU negotiations for an open aviation area/Open-skies agreement.
