U.S. Seeks More China Flights

U.S. officials remain hopeful that within the next few weeks, their counterparts in China will re-enter talks aimed at speeding up an increase in air traffic between the two countries.

In discussions the officials from each side held Jan. 30-31 in Beijing, "the overall tone was quite good," said Andrew Steinberg, assistant secretary for aviation and international affairs at the Department of Transportation, in an interview. "The goal is to make changes in the agreement this spring, and I'd like to see another round in the next several weeks."

Steinberg also indicated that route authorizations for next year's frequencies to China will likely be awarded in a timelier manner than were those for 2007 routes. On Feb. 8, the DOT granted UAL's(UAUA Quote) United Airlines the authority to begin flying a Washington-Beijing route at the end of March. ...