---

RMI and FSM Sign Air Transport Agreement

PALIKIR, Pohnpei (FSM Information Service): May 12, 1997 - The Governments of the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) and the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) executed a bilateral Air Transport Agreement on May 5, 1997, at Palikir, Pohnpei. Signing for the FSM Government was the Honorable Lukner B. Weilbacher, Secretary of the Department of Transportation and Communications, and signing for the RMI Government was Minister Kunio D. Lamari, of the Ministry of Transportation and Communications.

The two governments recognize the increasing importance of international air travel between the countries and agree to assure continued development of air transportation in their common welfare while both recognize each party's jurisdiction over its air space as Contracting Parties to the Convention on International Civil Aviation, opened for signature at Chicago on December 7, 1944.

Each party grants the other rights for the conduct of international air transportation by its designated airline to fly across its territory without landing; the right to make stops in its territory for non-traffic purposes; and to perform scheduled international air transportation on air routes designated by each party.

Furthermore, each designated airline may, on any or all flights and at its option operate flights in either or both directions; combine different flight numbers within one aircraft operation; transfer traffic from any of its aircraft to any of its other aircraft without directional or geographic limitation and without loss of any right to carry traffic otherwise permissible under this agreement and that the service serves a designated point in the territory of the Contracting Party designating the airline.

The agreement provides that on any segment or segments of the route, any designated airline may perform international air transportation without any limitation as to change, at any point on the route, in type or number of aircraft operated; provided that, in the outbound direction, the transportation beyond such point is a continuation of the transportation from the territory of the Contracting Party that has designated the airline and, in the inbound direction, the transportation to the territory of the Contracting Party that has designated the airline is a continuation of the transportation from beyond such point.

Under the agreement each Contracting Party enjoys the right to make stops in others territory at the points specified for the purpose of taking on board and discharging passengers and cargo including mail, separately or in combination, or to and from each territory.

The Contracting Parties recognize that rights granted under this agreement may be affected by the terms of the Compact of Free Association between the RMI and United States of America relating to Kwajalein Atoll.

Each party agrees to abide by the applicable laws and regulations governing air transportation while in each others territorial jurisdiction.

The signing of the Air Transportation Agreement between the FSM and RMI paves the way for Air Marshalls, the RMI national airline, to provide air service to the FSM. The same is true if the FSM establishes its own national airline. Meanwhile, the FSM has no national airline of its own, according to FSM Department of Transportation and Communication.