Transportation Press Releases

U.S. Transportation Secretary Peters Signs Aviation Agreement to Streamline U.S.-China Travel and Shipping from Seattle—07/09/07

Passengers and businesses in cities like Seattle will have access to better travel connections and cheaper shipping options to China due to a landmark aviation agreement signed today by U.S. Secretary of Transportation Mary E. Peters and Chinese Minister of Civil Aviation Yang Yuanyuan. The new agreement will more than double commercial passenger departures by 2012 and provide unlimited cargo flights between the U.S. and China, opening Seattle to new opportunities in its position as "one of the best gateways to the Pacific," Secretary Peters said.

"Our goal is to make flying from places like Seattle to China as easy as flying to New York or Boston today," Secretary Peters said, "And by providing more and cheaper shipping choices to China, this agreement will make it easier for U.S. companies to tap into China’s enormous market."

Estimates predict that this accord will generate as much as $5 billion in passenger and cargo revenues for the airline industry alone over the next six years and will produce as much as $8 billion in new economic activity in the United States, Peters noted.

The agreement is a result of a year-long negotiation between the U.S. and Chinese governments, and was finalized at the Strategic Economic Dialogue (SED) discussions held in Washington, D.C. in May. The signing today will allow both countries to move immediately to increase U.S.–China flights and move forward with assessments of airline proposals to operate the new routes. The U.S. Department of Transportation will award rights to serve one of the new routes to a U.S. carrier this year, and is currently accepting proposals from airlines for new services in 2008 and 2009 as well.