Evening star., 1946-02-17

they came home from Bermuda with
proof that the late Will Rogers was at
least partly wrong when he said this
country never loses a war or wins a
conference.
This happy assumption, however, is in
for pretty thorough going over on
Capitol Hill and elsewhere, although the
consensus seems to be that the winning
of additional freedom of the air puts
the United States well out in front in
the race for world air markets.
Yet some hard-headed Congressman
and operators still feel we traded in too
much of our own profitable air sover-
eighty for the five freedoms" over lands
whose solvency will be open to question
for years to come. The Anglo American
agreement at Bermuda unquestionably
involves concessions on both sides, and
just now it is undergoing keen scrutiny
on both sides of the North Atlantic
Higher Rates Forced.
While we won full freedom traffic
rights which the British had rejected at
the World Air Conference in Chicago
in 1914, our delegates agreed to rate
control method which stops our privately
owned overseas carriers from setting
their own fares in free competition.
This was done, it was pointed out, to
eliminate uneconomical rate wars"
The public, nevertheless, will pay about
5000 more on round trip to Europe
than the rate recently proposed by Pan
American World Airways and objected
to by the British and French.
An important concession won at Ber-
muda was British agreement to lift re-
strictions on our flight frequencies to
the United Kingdom. Americans had
felt that, while we allowed British sur
face carriers unrestricted use of our
ports. the British were tying us down
to their own limited air operations until
their manufacturers could produce
enough flying equipment to compete
with our war stimulated production.
Lifting of this restriction will permit
Pan Am and American Overseas Air
lines to cut the cost of transportation
through development of heavy traffic.
American already has announced it will
move for a substantial reduction in
fares at meeting in New York next
month of the North Atlantic confer
ence, International Air Transport Asso-
citation. The Civil Aeronautics Board
announced at Bermuda it would recog-
nize the rate-making function of this
international group
CAB Seeks Rate Control.
The CAB at the same time will seek
from Congress the right to control in
ternational as well as domestic rates.
The fifth freedom" right will allow
American carriers to pick up pay loads
in England and deliver them to other
countries in Europe, the Near East and
Asia. Separate agreements must be
made, it was said, for rights in British
dominions.
The British at the same time will
have the right to fly to ports of entry"
like New York, Washington, Philadel-
phia, Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, De-
troit, Miami and San Francisco and
pick up passengers and cargo for out
of-the-country destinations.
Under a proposed world system of
routes drawn up at Bermuda, the Brit
ish would have and the Americans 13
routes
Three of the British routes would
originate in London, one in Bermuda,
one in Nassau, one in Trinidad and one
in Singapore.
The British will be allowed to fill
transocean planes, or relay planes of
equal capacity, with fifth freedom"
traffic bound for Mexico, the West In
des, Central and South America or the
Far East in return for similar privileges
given our carriers in England.
Limiting factors on this type of COM
merce, it was said, include the capacity
of trans-ocean planes and the uneco-
nomic prospect of flying half-empty
transports across broad stretches of the
United States. Fifth freedom" traffic
will be subject to review in the light of
experience and necessity.
Will Exchange Observers.
The two countries agreed that a Civil
Aer9nautics Board representative will
be stationed in London and a British
Air Ministry spokesman will come to
Washington to keep both nations in
formed on new developments and to
arrange consultations on controversial
matters. Questions which cannot be
agreed on between the countries will be
referred to international civil aviation
authorities for an advisory opinion
The conference came up with at least
partial answer to the. question of the
commercial use of airfields built by the
UnNed States on bases leased from the
British for military occupation. With
the aid of Army Air Forces advisers,
the conference agreed to open fields at
Bermuda, Antigua, st. Lucia and
British Guinea to commercial opera
tions, while fields at jamaica and
Trinidad were designated as bad
weather alternates.
Our final approval of this UNDER
standing, however, rests upon reaching
a satisfactory agreement with New
foundland for use of Harmon, Gander
and Argentina airbases, and with Can
ada for use of Goose Bay airbase in
labrador.
These airields, carved out of the
wilderness by our Army and Navy engi-
neers, lie on the Great Circle route to
England and Northern Europe and are
much more important to our overseas
traffic pattern than those opened in
the South.
Living Standard Boosted.
nao1ino until,