page_title: Freedoms of the air
section_title: Overview
hierarchical_section_title: Freedoms of the air / Overview
caption_attribution_description: English: a diagram of the nine freedoms of the air, for use in the article Freedoms of the air
context_page_description: The freedoms of the air are a set of commercial aviation rights granting a country's airlines the privilege to enter and land in another country's airspace. They were formulated as a result of disagreements over the extent of aviation liberalisation in the Convention on International Civil Aviation of 1944, known as the Chicago Convention. The United States had called for a standardized set of separate air rights to be negotiated between states, but most other countries were concerned that the size of the U.S. airlines would dominate air travel if there were not strict rules. The freedoms of the air are the fundamental building blocks of the international commercial aviation route network. The use of the terms "freedom" and "right" confers entitlement to operate international air services only within the scope of the multilateral and bilateral treaties that allow them.
  The first two freedoms concern the passage of commercial aircraft through foreign airspace and airports, while the other freedoms are about carrying people, mail and cargo internationally. The first through fifth freedoms are officially enumerated by international treaties, especially the Chicago Convention.
context_section_description: Freedoms of the air apply to commercial aviation. The terms 'freedom' and 'right' are a shorthand way of referring to the type of international services permitted between two or more countries. Even when such services are allowed by countries, airlines may still face restrictions to accessing them by the terms of treaties or for other reasons.
caption: a diagram of the nine freedoms, with blue circles indicating the operating airline's domestic market and red or yellow circles indicating foreign markets
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