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OST-1999-6013

United Air Lines, Inc. and Air New Zealand Limited

Counsel:  Fulbright Jaworski, Susan Gotbetter, 212-318-3121 for Air New Zealand
United and Kirkland Ellis, Jeffrey Manley, 202-879-5161, jeffrey_manley@kirkland.com

Counsel:  Kirkland Ellis, Jeffrey Manley, 202.879.5000

Counsel:  Kirkland Ellis, Jeffery Manley, 202.879.5000

Counsel:  Fulbright Jaworski, Susan Gotbetter, 212-318-3121 for Air New Zealand

Jointly notify the Department that United's "UA" designator code will be placed on flights operated by ANZ, and ANZ's "NZ" code will be placed on flights operated by United between Los Angeles (LAX) and London (LHR).  The services will be implemented on or about June 1, 2002.

Counsel:  Fulbright Jaworski, Stewart Herman, 212.318.3000 for Air New Zealand, and Wilmer Cutler, Jeffrey Manley, 202.663.6000 for United

United and ANZ assert in their April 24, 2002 notice that "the proposed codeshare services are consistent with the U.S.-New Zealand and U.S.-U.K. Air Transport Agreements." However, the carriers fail to cite any operative bilateral provision authorizing reciprocal codesharing between incumbents on jointly operated U.S.-Heathrow routes. In fact, such codesharing is expressly prohibited by the June 5, 1995 Memorandum of Consultations between the Government of the United States and the Government of the  United Kingdom.

Delta also opposes consideration of expanded Heathrow codesharing by United or any other U.S.-Heathrow incumbent on an extrabilateral basis, unless and until Delta is granted meaningful access to Heathrow. U.S.-London passengers overwhelmingly prefer Heathrow service to other London area airports. Delta has been relegated to serving Gatwick Airport for more than 20 years. United already operates its own service on the Los Angeles­Heathrow route, whereas Delta must compete for Los Angeles-London passengers with connecting service to Gatwick. It would be manifestly unfair to allow United to increase its Los Angeles-Heathrow frequencies (though extrabilateral codesharing), when Delta is forced to labor at a competitive disadvantage for U.S. -London passengers.

Counsel:  Delta and Shaw Pittman, Robert Cohn, 202.663.8060, robert.cohn@shawpittman.com

To accept Delta's tortured interpretation that would include carriers "designated" under other international agreements to operate between U.S. and U.K. gateways on a fifth-freedom basis would lead to unreasonable and unintended results. It would, for example, lead to the absurd result that U.S. carriers could only use their code-sharing rights under the MOC in partnership with third-country airlines that had not been designated by their own governments. Moreover, it raises any number of questions. Must the third country carrier be "designated" to serve the U.S.-U.K. gateway route segment under its homeland's agreement with both the U.S. and the U.K. to be subject to the code-share restriction or would only one such designation be  sufficient? What if one country had so designated the carrier and the other allowed it to operate  on an extra-bilateral or undesignated basis? Would a carrier authorized by both the U.S. and U.K. but not formally "designated" under agreements with either or both the U.S. and U.K. be considered subject to the restriction? There would seem to be no reasonable possibility to include such an undesignated carrier, but this would lead to the absurd and discriminatory result that a third country carrier "designated" under applicable agreements would be subject to the restriction while an undesignated third country carrier would not. The inclusion of the words "designated on" were deliberate and must have been intended to refer to designations under the agreement in which they appear.

Counsel:  Fulbrigh Jaworski, Susan Gotbetter for Air New Zealand and Wilmer Cutler, Jeffrey Manley for United

The U.S.-U.K. codeshare MOC contains a provision that prevents carriers both of which serve the same U.S.-Heathrow route from doubling-up frequencies by codesharing on each other’s flights. United/ANZ erroneously claim that Delta ignores the "plain meaning" of the MOC, and that "designated carriers" could refer only to carriers designated under the U.S.-U.K. agreement. In fact, the MOC contemplates that the codeshare provisions would have application to not only to U.S. and U.K. carriers, but also to fifth freedom carriers, such as ANZ, exercising traffic rights under other international agreements.

If the drafters had meant to prohibit joint codeshare operations only between U.S. and U.K. designated carriers serving the same gateway segment, they would have said it that way -- as they did four times in the authorizing language. Instead, the broad language of the prohibiting sentence applies not only to U.S. and U.K airlines, but to all "airlines designated" on and serving the same route -- regardless of whether they are exercising traffic rights under the U.S.-U.K. agreement "or otherwise." Thus, the MOC expressly recognizes that some codeshare partners may be operating pursuant to other international agreements. The prohibiting language of the MOC reflects a clear departure from the prior narrow references only to "U.S. and U.K. airlines" in order to capture fifth freedom operators such as ANZ.

Contrary to United’s claim, this does not lead to any inconsistent or absurd results. If United was designated on -- but not currently serving -- the LAX-Heathrow route, then it would be free to codeshare on ANZ’s flights. The MOC clearly prohibits joint operations between carriers both serving the same gateway route segment, whether under the U.S.-U.K. agreement "or otherwise."

Counsel:  Shaw Pittman, Robert Cohn, 202.663.8060, robert.cohn@shawpittman.com

February 2, 2004

Notice of United Air Lines and Ar New Zealand

hereby notify the Department that United's "UA*" designator code will be placed on flights operated by ANZ, and ANZ's "NZ*" designator code will be placed on flights operated by United. All code shares will operate in both directions.

Counsel Fulbright & Jaworski, Susan Gotbetter, 212-318-3121, sgotbetter@fulbright.com / Wilmer Cutler, Jeffrey Manley, 202-663-6670, jeffrey.manley@wilmer.com

March 1, 2004

Notice of United Air Lines

United hereby notifies the Department that ANZ's "NZ*" designator code will be placed on flights operated by United between Chicago and Honolulu, HI.

Counsel: Wilmer Cutler, Jeffrey Manley, 202-663-6670, jeffrey.manley@wilmer.com

August 5, 2004

Notice of United Air Lines and Air New Zealand

Pursuant to the Department's approval of the blanket statement of authorization in the above referenced proceeding granted to United Air Lines, Inc. and Air New Zealand Limited on August 6, 1999, United and ANZ hereby notify the Department that United's "UA*" designator code will be places on flights operated by ANZ between Los Angeles, CA and Christchurch, New Zealand.

Counsel Fulbright & Jaworski, Susan Gotbetter, 212-318-3121, sgotbetter@fulbright.com for Air New Zealand / Wilmer Cutler, Jeffrey Manley, 202-663-6670, jeffrey.manley@wilmerhale.com for United

November 4, 2004

Notice of United Air Lines and Air New Zealand

Pursuant to the Department's approval of the blanket statement of authorization in the above referenced proceeding granted to United Air Lines, Inc. and Air New Zealand Limited on August 6, 1999, United and ANZ hereby notify the Department that United's "UA*" designator code will be placed on flights operated by ANZ between:

• Melbourne, Australia and Christchurch, New Zealand
• Melbourne, Australia and Wellington, New Zealand

Counsel Fulbright & Jaworski, Susan Gotbetter, 212-318-3121, sgotbetter@fulbright.com for Air New Zealand / Wilmer Cutler, Jeffrey Manley, 202-663-6670, jeffrey.manley@wilmerhale.com for United

July 19, 2005

Notice of United Air Lines

Pursuant to the Department's approval of the blanket statement of authorization in the above referenced proceeding granted to United Air Lines, Inc. and Air New Zealand Limited on August 6, 1999, United hereby notifies the Department that ANZ's "NZ*" designator code will be placed on flights operated by United between: Los Angeles, CA and New Orleans, LA and San Francisco, CA and New Orleans, LA.

Counsel: Wilmer Cutler, Jeffrey Manley, 202.663.6670

June 29, 2007

Re: Codeshare Notice

Pursuant to the blanket Statement of Authorization granted to United Air Lines, Inc. and Air New Zealand Limited on August 6, 1999, United hereby notifies the Department that ANZ’s “NZ” designator code will be placed on flights operated by United:

• between San Francisco, California and Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada;
• between San Francisco, California and Orlando, Florida; and,
• between Los Angeles, California and Orlando, Florida.

The proposed code-share services are consistent with applicable bilateral agreements. United and ANZ plan to implement these services on or after July 29, 2007.

Counsel: United, Julie Oettinger, 202-296-2370, julie.oettinger@united.com

October 10, 2007

Re: Codeshare Notice

Pursuant to the blanket Statement of Authorization granted to United Air Lines and Air New Zealand on August 6, 1999, United hereby notifies the Department that ANZ’s “NZ” designator code will be placed on flights operated by United between Los Angeles, California and Frankfurt, Germany.

United and ANZ intend to implement these services on or after December 15, 2007, the expected first date of operation for United’s new LAX-FRA service.

Counsel: United, Julie Oettinger, 202-296-2370, julie.oettinger@united.com

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