InternationalOpen Sky agreement signed by Armenia and the United States
Published: Saturday November 29, 2008
Artyom Movsesian. Photolure.
Yerevan - As part of the process of authorizing direct flights between the United States and Armenia, the two countries signed an Open Sky agreement in Washington on November 21.
Artyom Movsesian, director general of Armenia's Civil Aviation Agency, who was in Washington as part of the Armenian delegation to the U.S.-Armenia Task Force (USATF), signed the agreement with U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Daniel Fried.
Mr. Movsesian told the Armenian Reporter in an interview that "the agreement is fairly liberal and creates broad opportunities for cooperation with the U.S., where we have a large Armenian diaspora. Apart from that, the agreement gives aviation companies opportunities to implement flexible policies."
For actual flights to begin, Armenian and U.S. carriers must carry out feasibility studies: They must determine the aircraft they wish to use, the routes they wish to take, the frequency, and the price, Mr. Movsesian said.
On the Armenian side, the management of Armavia has stated on more than one occasion that the company is planning direct flights to Los Angeles with a refueling stop in Shannon, Ireland.
Before that can happen, however, the U.S. Federal Aviation Agency must, under the agreement, carry out studies to confirm that Armenia can fulfill flight security and aviation security demands.
Mr. Movsesian said the investigation would last at least six months. He noted that the representatives of the U.S. side have recently visited Armenia and met with him.
