Originally Posted by
coorsFlight
I see a lot of posts saying that "LCC's will be OK, as their focus is domestic. NAI will never be able to fly point-to-point in the US!"
Let me ask you this... if it was this easy for them to get flag-of-convenience... how hard will it be to advocate for cabotage?
The same John Doe that only cares that a ticket from Vegas to Europe costs $69 won't give a damn that his $49 ticket from Vegas to JFK is flown by foreign pilots.
All of us are vulnerable.
The reason that NAI was approved is because there was no legal basis for its denial. It's more accurate to say that they were not disapproved than they were approved. Current cabotage laws expressly prohibit point to point domestic operations in the US by a foreign flag carrier. So in that case there is a legal basis for such a denial. However, laws can change. Legislators and the general public have absolutely no empathy for the airlines whatsoever.