· 4.
4. In recent years, the IATA tariff machinery has come under increasing strain.
agreement has not been possible. In some cases, where
In
many areas formal
there is a large measure of agreement amongst carriers, informal agreements
have been reached and submitted to governments for approval, but these do not
carry the same force as a formal agreement and in the event of breaches IATA
cannot take enforcement action.
t.]
5. The Authority examines tariff agreements and bilateral filings against the
criteria laid down in the Act and Policy Guidance, bearing in mind the UK's
internation obligations. Where there is a British carrier operating on the
routes, theAuthority calls on it to provide economic justification, in the
form of costs and revenue data, for the proposals. This is however, practicable
only on a route network basis since it is not usually possible for the carrier to isolate such data for individual routes. [wever, in addition to such assess-
ments the Authority, with British Airways and British Caledonian, is conducting
in depth studies on certain important routes on a continuing basis and in the
The longer term these studies will have implications in the wider context.
position is different in respect of proposals for tariffs on routes where there
is no UK carrier. This is because ASAS confer no rights on a contracting party.
to require a designated carrier of the other Party to provide costs justification
for its tariff proposals. Whilst the Authority can invite foreign carriers to
provide such justification, most regard the information as commerically
confidential and either decline the invitation or provide information of a
superficial nature on which it is not possible to take an informed decision.
In these circumstances, it is inadvisable to press the matter both because it
would almost certainly escalate to government level with the risk of a protracted
dispute about the provisions of the ASA, and because it would give a hostage
to fortune and expose British carriers to similar pressure from foreign governments
pressure whihh KMG would resist both on principle and because any leakage of
information which was provided might be damaging to the UK carrier's interest. TheAuthority approves proposals only when it is satisfied that it is
commercial
.../5