With respect to Article 4, the US delegation noted that the Department of Transportation (DOT) would require any foreign air carrier seeking authority to operate services pursuant to the Agreement to indicate the responsible authority that had issued its AOC and operating licence, thus making clear which authority is responsible for safety, security and other regulatory oversight of the carrier.

On August 23, 2005, the DOT announced further expedited procedures under which it is contemplated that foreign air carriers seeking new route authority would file concurrent exemption and permit applications.

The airlines of each Party shall not be precluded from entering into franchise or branding arrangements, including conditions relating to brand protection and operational matters, provided that: they comply, in particular, with the applicable laws and regulations concerning control; the ability of the airline to exist outside of the franchise is not jeopardised; the arrangement does not result in a foreign airline engaging in cabotage operations; and applicable regulations, such as consumer protection provisions, including those regarding the disclosure of the identity of the airline operating the service, are complied with.

4. Notwithstanding paragraph 2, the European Community and its Member States reserves the right to limit investments by US nationals in the voting equity of a Community airline made after the signature of this Agreement to a level equivalent to that allowed by the United States for foreign nationals in US airlines, provided that the exercise of that right is consistent with international law.

Second, actual control of a US airline by foreign nationals is also prohibited.

2. ECAC/JAA responsibilities - to finalise and adopt, in co-operation with the Commission, a comprehensive and workable Safety Assessment Procedure (the framework for this has already been established) - to establish, for this summer, a co-ordination mechanism for the centralisation and dissemination of information and prepare a system for the subsequent analysis of foreign air carriers whose safety levels do not seem appropriate - to set up coordination procedures with other expert bodies, eg. the ICAO - to set up specialist assessment teams for the audit of foreign air carriers and safety oversight authorities - to consider setting up ...[+++]a European co-operation programme to help third countries improve their safety oversight capabilities.