Speaking to the UK Aviation Club, IATA Director General Alexandre de Juniac said that Britain has no choice but to reach an air service deal with the rest of Europe.
“When the UK leaves the European Single Market, it will also leave the European Common Aviation Area. And when it breaks from the European Union, all traffic rights to the rest of the world associated with Europe will also be thrown into question,” he said.
“The basis of international aviation is bilateral air services agreements. There is no World Trade Organisation agreement to fall back on. For that reason, I don’t see any alternative to a negotiated agreement.”
He urged an early resolution for aviation in the Brexit discussions and said that time is precious. “The Brexit clock is ticking towards a deadline of March 2019. But the aviation deadline is earlier.”
