Air Transport and the Gats
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AIR TRANSPORT AND THE GATS AIR TRANSPORT AND THE GATS DOCUMENTATION FOR THE FIRST AIR TRANSPORT REVIEW UNDER THE GENERAL AGREEMENT ON TRADE IN SERVICES (GATS) 1995-2000 IN REVIEW 1 Printed by the WTO Secretariat - 3642.06 WTO Publications World Trade Organization 154, rue de Lausanne CH-1211 Geneva 21 Tel: (41 22) 739 52 08 Fax: (41 22) 739 54 58 Email: [email protected] © World Trade Organization 2006 AIR TRANSPORT AND THE GATS DOCUMENTATION FOR THE FIRST AIR TRANSPORT REVIEW UNDER THE GENERAL AGREEMENT ON TRADE IN SERVICES (GATS) 1995-2000 IN REVIEW In preparation for the second air transport review mandated by the GATS Annex on Air Transport Services, the Secretariat has gathered in the present booklet the documentation produced in 2000-1 for the first review. It consolidates documents S/C/W/163 and its six Addenda, with a common table of contents and single page numbering. It is intended to facilitate Members' cross-reference to information contained in the documentation produced for the first review. June 2006 S/C/W/163 i Air Transport and the GATS - 1995/2000 in Review June 2006 ii S/C/W/163 Air Transport and the GATS - 1995/2000 in Review TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES AND CHARTS ........................................................................................................................... x GENERAL INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................................. 1 PART ONE ................................................................................................................................................................ 1 I. AIRCRAFT REPAIR AND MAINTENANCE ................................................................................................ 3 1. Economic developments ................................................................................................................................. 3 2. Regulatory developments ............................................................................................................................... 7 II. COMPUTER RESERVATION SYSTEM (CRS) SERVICES ..................................................................... 10 A. CLASSICAL CRS .............................................................................................................................................. 10 1. Economic developments concerning the classical CRS ........................................................................... 10 (i) Concentration .................................................................................................................................................... 14 (ii) An expansion fuelled by geographical extension and by an increasingly challenged price model ..................... 14 (iii) Extension to other leisure and travel areas ....................................................................................................... 16 (iv) Initial public offerings and severing of the link with parent carriers ................................................................. 16 (v) Erosion of the predominant role of traditional CRS provider in the issuance of air transport tickets and subsequent diversification into other electronic travel activities ............................... 16 2. Regulatory developments concerning classical CRS ............................................................................... 17 B. NEW FORMS OF CRS ...................................................................................................................................... 18 1. A brief history of online travel distribution ................................................................................................ 18 2. Analysis of the main types of online booking providers ........................................................................... 19 (i) Virtual travel agencies ...................................................................................................................................... 20 (ii) Airline websites ................................................................................................................................................ 21 (iii) Alliance websites .............................................................................................................................................. 23 (iv) Multi-airline portals .......................................................................................................................................... 23 (v) Other types of providers .................................................................................................................................... 25 III. SELLING AND MARKETING ...................................................................................................................... 26 IV. FRANCHISING .............................................................................................................................................. 27 V. SERVICIES AUXILIARY TO ALL MODES OF TRANSPORT WHEN DELIVERED IN AN AIR TRANSPORT CONTEXT (freight forwarding and warehousing) ............................................ 33 June 2006 S/C/W/163 iii Air Transport and the GATS - 1995/2000 in Review VI. RENTAL AND LEASING SERVICES .......................................................................................................... 35 A. DEFINITION AND ASSESSMENT .................................................................................................................. 35 B. FINANCIAL LEASING...................................................................................................................................... 38 C. OPERATIONAL LEASING ................................................................................................................................ 38 ANNEX – Regulation JAR-OPS 1.165 on Leasing ................................................................................................ 42 VII. CATERING ...................................................................................................................................................... 44 1. Economic Developments ............................................................................................................................... 44 2. Regulatory developments ............................................................................................................................. 44 PART TWO .............................................................................................................................................................. 47 INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................................................... 47 I. FUELLING ....................................................................................................................................................... 49 II. GROUND HANDLING .................................................................................................................................. 50 1. Introduction .................................................................................................................................................... 50 2. Definition ........................................................................................................................................................ 51 (a) Market Sectors .................................................................................................................................................. 51 (b) Operational Sectors .......................................................................................................................................... 52 (c) Sub-sector Categories ....................................................................................................................................... 52 3. Scope – linkages with the UN Provisional CPC ......................................................................................... 53 4. Regulation and liberalization ....................................................................................................................... 54 5. Economic evolution – third-party competition – industry consolidation ............................................... 59 ANNEX – List of Ground Handling Services in the European Union Council Directive.................................. 73 III. AIRPORT SERVICES .................................................................................................................................... 74 A. AIRPORT SERVICES AND AIRPORT SERVICE PROVIDERS ......................................................................... 74 1. Introduction: definitional and classification issues ................................................................................ 74 2. Economic and regulatory developments ..................................................................................................... 84 (a) Traffic ................................................................................................................................................................ 84 (b) Financial situation ............................................................................................................................................. 87 (c) A significant evolution regarding the ownership of airports .............................................................................