UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY 

WASHINGTON, DC

Issued by the Department of Transportation on May 6, 2011 

NOTICE OF ACTION TAKEN -- DOCKET DOT-OST-2011-0065 _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 

This serves as notice to the public of the action described below, taken by the Department official indicated (no 

additional confirming order will be issued in this matter). 

Joint Application of Delta Air Lines, Inc. (Delta) and China Eastern Airlines Corporation Ltd. (China 

Eastern) filed 3/23/11 for: 

XX Blanket exemption under 49 U.S.C. §40109 for a two-year period to permit Delta to provide the following 

service: 

Scheduled foreign air transportation of persons, property, and mail, on a codeshare-only basis with China 

Eastern, between points in China and behind, intermediate, and beyond points in third countries. 

XX Blanket exemption under 49 U.S.C. §40109 for a two-year period to permit China Eastern to provide the 

following service: 

Scheduled foreign air transportation of persons, property, and mail, on a codeshare-only basis with 

Delta/Delta Connection, between points in the United States and behind, intermediate, and beyond points 

in third countries. 

XX Blanket statement of authorization under 14 CFR Part 212 to permit Delta to: 

Display the (MU*) designator code of China Eastern on flights operated by Delta between the United 

States and China, within the United States and China, and to behind, intermediate, and beyond points in 

third countries. Delta requests that this blanket statement of authorization extend to its Delta Connection 

regional affiliates which operate service for Delta within North America.1

XX Blanket statement of authorization under 14 CFR Part 212 to permit China Eastern to: 

Display the (DL*) designator code of Delta on flights operated by China Eastern between the United 

States and China, within China and the United States, and to behind, intermediate, and beyond points in 

third countries. 

The joint applicants request that their statements of authorization be granted for an indefinite period. The joint 

applicants further request flexibility to serve any of their named code-share points via any U.S.-China gateway 

or intermediate routing flown by the carriers, without providing additional notice. 

Applicant reps: Alexander Van der Bellen and Jeff Morgan (202) 842-4184 (Delta)

 Evelyn D. Sahr and James G. Ehrig (202) 659-6622 (China Eastern)

DOT Analyst: Robert J. Finamore (202) 366-2405

 

1

 The Delta Connection carriers are Atlantic Southeast Airlines, Inc.; Chautauqua Airlines, Inc.; Comair, Inc.; Compass 

Airlines, Inc.; Mesaba Aviation, Inc.; Pinnacle Airlines, Inc.; SkyWest Airlines, Inc.; and Shuttle America Corporation. 
D I S P O S I T I O N 

XX Granted in part (subject to conditions, see below), remainder dismissed2

The above action granting exemption authority to Delta is effective when taken: May 6, 2011, through May 6, 

2013. The above action granting exemption authority to China Eastern is effective when taken: May 6, 2011, 

through May 6, 2012. The above action granting blanket statements of authorization to Delta and China Eastern 

is effective: May 6, 2011, and will remain in effect indefinitely, subject to conditions. 

Action taken by: Paul L. Gretch, Director 

 Office of International Aviation 

XX The authority granted is consistent with the aviation agreement between the United States and the 

People’s Republic of China. 

Except to the extent exempted or waived, this authority is subject to the terms, conditions, and limitations 

indicated: 

XX The holder’s certificates of public convenience and necessity 

XX China Eastern’s foreign air carrier permit (Order 92-11-7) 

 XX Standard U.S. carrier exemption conditions (attached as Appendix A) 

 XX Standard foreign carrier exemption conditions (attached as Appendix B) 

XX Code-share conditions (attached as Appendix C) 

Special conditions/Remarks: We note that Delta has conducted a safety audit of China Eastern under the 

Department’s Code-Share Safety Audit Program, and the FAA has advised us that it has reviewed the relevant 

audit report and found it to be acceptable. 

The exemption authority granted to Delta and China Eastern is limited to code-share only operations. 

On the basis of data officially noticeable under Rule 24(g) of the Department's regulations, we found the applicant qualified 

to provide the exemption services authorized. 

Under authority assigned by the Department in its regulations, 14 CFR Part 385, we found that (1) our action was consistent 

with Department policy; (2) grant of the authority was consistent with the public interest; and (3) grant of the authority 

would not constitute a major regulatory action under the Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975. To the extent not 

granted, we denied all requests in the referenced Docket. We may amend, modify, or revoke the authority granted in this 

Notice at any time without hearing at our discretion. 

Persons entitled to petition the Department for review of the action set forth in this Notice under the Department’s 

regulations, 14 CFR §385.30, may file their petitions within seven (7) days after the date of issuance of this Notice. This 

action was effective when taken, and the filing of a petition for review will not alter such effectiveness. 

An electronic version of this document is available on the World Wide Web at: 

http://www.regulations.gov

 

2 The one-year duration of the exemption authority we granted to China Eastern is consistent with our usual policy of 

granting exemption authority in the circumstances presented. Therefore, we dismissed the application to the extent that 

China Eastern sought exemption authority for a longer period. 
Appendix A 

U.S. Carrier Exemption Conditions

In the conduct of the operations authorized, the U.S. carrier applicant(s) shall: 

(1) Hold at all times effective operating authority from the government of each country served; 

(2) Comply with applicable requirements concerning oversales contained in 14 CFR 250 (for 

scheduled operations, if authorized); 

(3) Comply with the requirements for reporting data contained in 14 CFR 241; 

(4) Comply with requirements for minimum insurance coverage, and for certifying that coverage to 

the Department, contained in 14 CFR 205; 

(5) Except as specifically exempted or otherwise provided for in a Department Order, comply with the 

requirements of 14 CFR 203, concerning waiver of Warsaw Convention liability limits and defenses; 

(6) Comply with all applicable requirements of the Federal Aviation Administration, the 

Transportation Security Administration, and with all applicable U.S. Government requirements 

concerning security, including, but not limited to, 49 CFR Part 1544. To assure compliance with all 

applicable U.S. Government requirements concerning security, the holder shall, before commencing 

any new service (including charter flights) to or from a foreign airport, contact its Principal Security 

Inspector (PSI) to advise the PSI of its plans and to find out whether the Transportation Security 

Administration has determined that security is adequate to allow such airport(s) to be served; 

(7) Comply with such other reasonable terms, conditions, and limitations required by the public 

interest as may be prescribed by the Department of Transportation, with all applicable orders and 

regulations of other U.S. agencies and courts, and with all applicable laws of the United States. 

The authority granted shall be effective only during the period when the holder is in compliance with 

the conditions imposed above. 

 

 

 1/2008 

 
Appendix B 

Foreign Carrier Exemption Conditions

In the conduct of the operations authorized, the foreign carrier applicant(s) shall: 

(1) Not conduct any operations unless it holds a currently effective authorization from its homeland for such 

operations, and it has filed a copy of such authorization with the Department; 

(2) Comply with all applicable requirements of the Federal Aviation Administration, the Transportation 

Security Administration, and with all applicable U.S. Government requirements concerning security, including, 

but not limited to, 14 CFR Parts 129, 91, and 36 and 49 CFR Part 1546 or 1550, as applicable. To assure 

compliance with all applicable U.S. Government requirements concerning security, the holder shall, before 

commencing any new service (including charter flights) from a foreign airport that would be the holder’s last 

point of departure for the United States, contact its International Industry Representative (IIR) (formerly referred 

to as International Principal Security Inspector) to advise the IIR of its plans and to find out whether the 

Transportation Security Administration has determined that security is adequate to allow such airport(s) to be 

served; 

(3) Comply with the requirements for minimum insurance coverage contained in 14 CFR Part 205, and, prior to 

the commencement of any operations under this authority, file evidence of such coverage, in the form of a 

completed OST Form 6411, with the Federal Aviation Administration’s Program Management Branch (AFS260), Flight Standards Service (any changes to, or termination of, insurance also shall be filed with that office); 

(4) Not operate aircraft under this authority unless it complies with operational safety requirements at least 

equivalent to Annex 6 of the Chicago Convention; 

(5) Conform to the airworthiness and airman competency requirements of its Government for international air 

services; 

(6) Except as specifically exempted or otherwise provided for in a Department Order, comply with the 

requirements of 14 CFR Part 203, concerning waiver of Warsaw Convention liability limits and defenses; 

(7) Agree that operations under this authority constitute a waiver of sovereign immunity, for the purposes of 28 

U.S.C. 1605(a), but only with respect to those actions or proceedings instituted against it in any court or other 

tribunal in the United States that are: (a) based on its operations in international air transportation that, 

according to the contract of carriage, include a point in the United States as a point of origin, point of 

destination, or agreed stopping place, or for which the contract of carriage was purchased in the United States; 

or (b) based on a claim under any international agreement or treaty cognizable in any court or other tribunal of 

the United States. In this condition, the term "international air transportation" means "international 

transportation" as defined by the Warsaw Convention, except that all States shall be considered to be High 

Contracting Parties for the purpose of this definition; 

(8) Except as specifically authorized by the Department, originate or terminate all flights to/from the United 

States in its homeland; 

(9) Comply with the requirements of 14 CFR Part 217, concerning the reporting of scheduled, nonscheduled, 

and charter data; 

(10) If charter operations are authorized, except as otherwise provided in the applicable aviation agreement, 

comply with the Department's rules governing charters (including 14 CFR Parts 212 and 380); and 

(11) Comply with such other reasonable terms, conditions, and limitations required by the public interest as may 

be prescribed by the Department, with all applicable orders or regulations of other U.S. agencies and courts, and 

with all applicable laws of the United States. 

This authority shall not be effective during any period when the holder is not in compliance with the conditions 

imposed above. Moreover, this authority cannot be sold or otherwise transferred without explicit Department 

approval under Title 49 of the U.S. Code. 

 12/2007
Appendix C 

The code-share operations authorized here are subject to the following conditions:1

(a) The statements of authorization will remain in effect only as long as (i) Delta and China Eastern continue to 

hold the necessary underlying authority to operate the code-share services at issue, and (ii) the code-share 

agreement providing for the code-share operations remains in effect. 

(b) Delta and/or China Eastern, as appropriate, must notify the Department no later than 30 days before they 

begin any new code-share service under the code-share services authorized here. Such notice shall identify the 

market(s) to be served, which carrier will be operating the aircraft in the code-share market added, and the date 

on which the service will begin. Such notice should be filed in Docket DOT-OST-2011-0065.2

(c) Delta and/or China Eastern, as appropriate, must promptly notify the Department if the code-share agreement 

providing for the code-share operations is no longer effective or if the carriers decide to cease operating all or a 

portion of the approved code-share services. Such notice should be filed in Docket DOT-OST-2011-0065.3

(d) The code-sharing operations conducted under this authority must comply with 14 CFR 257 and with any 

amendments to the Department’s regulations concerning code-share arrangements that may be adopted. 

Notwithstanding any provisions in the contract between the carriers, our approval here is expressly conditioned 

upon the requirements that the subject foreign air transportation be sold in the name of the carrier holding out 

such service in the computer reservation systems and elsewhere; that the carrier selling such transportation (i.e.,

the carrier shown on the ticket) accept responsibility for the entirety of the code-share journey for all obligations 

established in its contract of carriage with the passenger; that the passenger liability of the operating carrier be 

unaffected; and that the operating carrier shall not permit the code of its U.S. code-sharing partner to be carried 

on any flight that enters, departs, or transits the airspace of any area for whose airspace the Federal Aviation 

Administration has issued a flight prohibition. 

(e) The authority to operate to third countries is subject to the condition that any service provided under the 

statement of authorization shall be consistent with all applicable agreements between the United States and the 

foreign countries involved. Furthermore, (i) nothing in the award of this blanket statement of authorization 

should be construed as conferring upon Delta rights (including code-share, fifth freedom intermediate and/or 

beyond rights) to serve markets where U.S. carrier entry is limited unless Delta notifies the Department of its 

intent to serve such a market and unless and until the Department has completed any necessary carrier selection 

procedures to determine which carrier(s) should be authorized to exercise such rights; and (ii) should there be a 

request by any carrier to use the limited-entry route rights that are included in the authority of Delta by virtue of 

the blanket statement of authorization granted here, but that are not then being used by Delta, the holding of 

such authority will not be considered as providing any preference for Delta in a competitive carrier selection 

proceeding to determine which carrier(s) should be entitled to use the authority at issue.4

(f) The authority granted here is specifically conditioned so that neither Delta nor China Eastern shall give any 

force or effect to any contractual provisions between themselves that are contrary to these conditions. 

We may amend, modify, or revoke the authority granted at any time without hearing at our discretion.

 

1

 The Delta Connection carriers identified in the body of this notice will also be subject to these code-share conditions. 

2 The initial code-share points proposed by the Joint Applicants are attached as Appendix D. We grant the request of Delta 

that notice by Delta or any of the Delta Connection carriers would be deemed notice given for all (except in the case of 

Mexico where operator-specific notices will continue to be supplied for Delta/Delta Connection services). Also, we grant 

the joint applicants’ request for flexibility to serve any of their named code-share points via any authorized U.S.-China 

gateway or intermediate routing flown by the carriers, without providing additional notice, to the extent that such 

operations are consistent with the underlying authority held by Delta and China Eastern. 

3

 We expect this notification to be received within ten (10) days after such non-effectiveness or of such decision. 4

 The notice in paragraph (b) above can be used for this notification. 
Appendix D