HK Says No to "Open Skies" ProposalHong Kong does not appreciate the implications of the slogan "open skies", because it embodies a stance that is not always fair to Hong Kong, said Sandra Lee, the Secretary for Economic Services of Hong Kong on Saturday.Lee told the Radio Television Hong Kong Program "Hong Kong Letter" that the "open skies" policy allows some economies to protect their local airlines through the application of double standards. For example, some economies exclude their huge domestic market from the boundaries of "open skies", thereby preventing Hong Kong airlines from competing with their own. "Hong Kong does not accept a slogan such as 'open skies', because we believe that Hong Kong and our aviation partners should both have fair and equitable opportunities. Putting this fundamental principle at risk would not only frustrate the healthy expansion of our air services sector, but could also adversely affect Hong Kong's long term development as a major international and regional aviation hub," said Lee. "I cannot agree more with a Hong Kong academic who observed that if we blindly follow an 'open skies' policy proposed by some aviation partners, we could be chipping away the foundation of fair and equitable competition for our aviation industry and this might cause damage to our economy," said Lee. More than 60 airlines operate in Hong Kong, providing 3,800 weekly flights to and from over 130 cities. These figures compare favorably with those of major cities in the region. Hong Kong has been ranked number one in terms of international air cargo throughout, and has also been one of the top five in terms of international air passengers flows. |
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