 

			  UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

		        DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

			  OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY

			          WASHINGTON, D.C.

			Issued by the Department of Transportation on May 23, 2003 

NOTICE OF ACTION TAKEN -- DOCKET OST-03-14842

________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________

This serves as notice to the public of the action described below, taken
by the Department official indicated (no additional confirming order
will be issued in this matter).

Applicant:  Belair Airlines Ltd.						Date Filed: April 2, 2003

Relief requested:  Exemption from 49 U.S.C. § 41301 to engage in
charter foreign air transportation of persons, property and mail between
any point or points in Switzerland and any point or points in the United
States; and to perform other charters in accordance with Part 212 of the
Department’s rules.

If renewal, date and citation of last action:  New authority

Applicant representative: William Karas  202-429-3000           DOT
analyst:  Shelita Smith  202-366-1226

Responsive pleadings:  None

	DISPOSITION

Action:  Approved									Action date:  May 23, 2003

Effective dates of authority granted:  May 23, 2003 – May 23, 2005

Basis for approval (bilateral agreement/reciprocity):  Air Transport
Services Agreement with Switzerland

Except to the extent exempted/waived, this authority is subject to the
terms, conditions, and limitations indicated:

X Standard exemption conditions (attached)

Special conditions/Partial grant/Denial basis/Remarks:  Based on the
record in this case, we found that that Belair is financially and
operationally qualified to perform the services authorized above.  We
found that Belair is substantially owned and effectively controlled by
Swiss citizens.  Specifically, Belair is 100% owned by Hotelplan
International Travel Organization Ltd. (Hotelplan), a Swiss company. 
Hotelplan is a wholly-owned subsidiary of another Swiss entity, the
Federation of Migros Cooperatives.  The carrier is properly licensed and
designated by the Government of Switzerland to perform the proposed
services.  By memorandum dated April 17, 2003, the FAA advised us that
it knew of no reason why we should act unfavorably on Belair’s
application.

Action taken by:   Paul L. Gretch, Director	

		      Office of International Aviation	

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___________________________________________________________

Under authority assigned by the Department in its regulations, 14 CFR
Part 385, we found that  (1) our action was consistent with Department
policy; (2) grant of the authority was consistent with the public
interest; and (3) grant of the authority would not constitute a major
regulatory action under the Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975. 
To the extent not granted/deferred/dismissed, we denied all requests in
the referenced Docket.  We may amend, modify, or revoke the authority
granted in this Notice at any time without hearing at our discretion.

Persons entitled to petition the Department for review of the action set
forth in this Notice under the Department’s regulations, 14 CFR
§385.30, may file their petitions within seven (7) days after the date
of issuance of this Notice.  This action was effective when taken, and
the filing of a petition for review will not alter such effectiveness.

An electronic version of this document is available on the World Wide
Web at:

  HYPERLINK "http://dms.dot.gov//reports/reports_aviation.asp" 
http://dms.dot.gov//reports/reports_aviation.asp 

												        Appendix A

FOREIGN AIR CARRIER CONDITIONS OF AUTHORITY

In the conduct of the operations authorized, the holder shall:

(1)  Not conduct any operations unless it holds a currently effective
authorization from its homeland for such operations, and it has filed a
copy of such authorization with the Department;

(2)  Comply with all applicable requirements of the Federal Aviation
Administration, including, but not limited to, 14 CFR Parts 129, 91, and
36, and with all applicable U.S. Government requirements concerning
security;1

(3)  Comply with the requirements for minimum insurance coverage
contained in 14 CFR Part 205, and, prior to the commencement of any
operations under this authority, file evidence of such coverage, in the
form of a completed OST Form 6411, with the Federal Aviation
Administration’s Program Management Branch (AFS-260), Flight Standards
Service (any changes to, or termination of, insurance also shall be
filed with that office);

(4)  Not operate aircraft under this authority unless it complies with
operational safety requirements at least equivalent to Annex 6 of the
Chicago Convention;

(5)  Conform to the airworthiness and airman competency requirements of
its Government for international air services;

(6)  Except as specifically exempted or otherwise provided for in a
Department Order, comply with the requirements of 14 CFR Part 203,
concerning waiver of Warsaw Convention liability limits and defenses;

(7)  Agree that operations under this authority constitute a waiver of
sovereign immunity, for the purposes of 28 U.S.C. 1605(a), but only with
respect to those actions or proceedings instituted against it in any
court or other tribunal in the United States that are:

   (a)  based on its operations in international air transportation
that, according to the contract of carriage, include a point in the
United States as a point of origin, point of destination, or agreed
stopping place, or for which the contract of carriage was purchased in
the United States; or

   (b)  based on a claim under any international agreement or treaty
cognizable in any court or other tribunal of the United States.

In this condition, the term "international air transportation" means
"international transportation" as defined by the Warsaw Convention,
except that all States shall be considered to be High Contracting
Parties for the purpose of this definition;

(8)  Except as specifically authorized by the Department, originate or
terminate all flights to/from the United States in its homeland;

(9)  Comply with the requirements of 14 CFR Part 217, concerning the
reporting of scheduled, nonscheduled, and charter data;

(10) If charter operations are authorized, except as otherwise provided
in the applicable aviation agreement, comply with the Department's rules
governing charters (including 14 CFR Parts 212 and 380); and

(11) Comply with such other reasonable terms, conditions, and
limitations required by the public interest as may be prescribed by the
Department, with all applicable orders or regulations of other U.S.
agencies and courts, and with all applicable laws of the United States.

This authority shall not be effective during any period when the holder
is not in compliance with the conditions imposed above.  Moreover, this
authority cannot be sold or otherwise transferred without explicit
Department approval under Title 49 of the U.S. Code (formerly the
Federal Aviation Act of 1958, as amended).__________________

1  To assure compliance with all applicable U.S. Government requirements
concerning security, the holder should, before commencing any new
service (including charter flights) from a foreign airport that would be
the holder’s last point of departure for the United States, inform its
Principal Security Inspector of its plans.

 											

U.S. Department of Transportation	

Office of the Secretary of Transportation									        (41301/40109)
10/2002

 Belair’s application was accompanied by a motion under Part 302 to
withhold certain financial information from public disclosure.  In
support of its motion, Belair states that it is a privately held Swiss
company and, as such, is not required by its government to disclose such
information.  We have reviewed the documents under the disclosure
guidelines of Rule 12 and have determined that they warrant confidential
treatment.  Because of the commercially sensitive nature of the
information, we have determined that the documents fall within the
Freedom of Information Act exemption for proprietary information and
would adversely affect the competitive position of Belair under 49
U.S.C. § 40115.

