WASHINGTON (March 20, 2015)—Statement from U.S. Travel Association President and CEO Roger Dow in response to concerns expressed by airline unions over Open Skies:
“We are heartened and relieved to hear that airline unions share our priorities: U.S. economic growth and job creation. We wish that choice and comfort for travelers were as much a part of their equation, but alas.
“Unfortunately, having carefully scrutinized the Big Three airlines’ and their unions’ recent position on Open Skies, we arrive at a diametrically opposite conclusion: contravening these open and transparent agreements that were negotiated in good faith holds dire consequences for sustaining the U.S. economic recovery and recent encouraging job growth. I say this on behalf of the industry that has restored jobs 33 percent faster than the rest of the economy since the ’07-’08 downturn, and is now responsible for 10 percent of all U.S. exports—partially thanks to Open Skies.
“We wish we did not have to stand apart from our friends in the airline industry on this or any other issue. But with their efforts to reduce competition in the aviation marketplace having become so aggressive—and the negative impact of these policies upon consumers so abundantly clear—we simply cannot sit idly by.”
