711.5127/15

The Secretary of State to the Chargé in France (Armour)

No. 4331

Sir: Reference is made to your telegram No. 527 of November 16, 4 p.m., and to your despatch No. 10024 of November 20, 1929,23 reporting the attitude of French officials with respect to granting permission for American air transport companies to operate their planes over French territory in the Caribbean and South America.

The position taken by this Government, which you should emphasize in your conferences with French officials, is that any agreements between it and a foreign State regarding reciprocal flying rights should be limited to establishing questions of principle and not relate to private agreements to be made by individual American companies with foreign companies or corporations. This Government controls flying over American territory and hence is in a position to make agreements with a foreign State granting aircraft of that State permission to fly over American territory on the basis of reciprocal permission for American companies to fly over the territory of the State in question, and this is what has been proposed to the French Government. This Government has no authority to compel a private American company to make any agreements with any other American or foreign Company.

Furthermore, you should point out to the French authorities the obvious impropriety of the United States and France making an agreement covering Brazilian territory or territory of any other third nation. Even should American companies make an agreement [Page 535] with a French line for the establishment of airdromes, radio and rescue facilities, et cetera, between Cayenne and Natal, this Government obviously could give no assurance, such as you report the French authorities have requested, that this work would be carried out by the American company. The United States Government has no control over aviation in Brazil or in any other country outside of American territory. It will be interested to know how the French Government proposes to make such assurance effective in the Republic of Brazil.

The question at issue is whether the French Government is willing to make a reciprocal arrangement with the United States for flying privileges in the territories of the respective countries and if any further attempt is made to depart from that principle you should immediately point out in the first place, the obvious impossibility of this Government making such an undertaking as the French Government desires as it has no authority by law to compel the American company to make such an arrangement and, secondly, the impropriety of this Government entering into an agreement with France regarding the operations of American companies in Brazil or any other third country.

The point of view of this Government has been clearly set forth to Monsieur Henry, First Secretary of the French Embassy, as you were informed by the enclosures to the Department’s instruction No. 4318 of December 5, 1929.24 The Department has been advised that the French Embassy in Washington has been in telegraphic communication with the Foreign Office in this matter; that the Embassy feels that the Foreign Office now understands the position of this Government, and that the latter is taking the matter up with the Air Ministry and hopes to have the matter arranged satisfactorily. You will therefore please continue to press the matter along the lines above indicated.

As regards the question of the restriction upon the importation of Lioré and Olivier flying boats into the United States, there is enclosed for your information a copy of a self-explanatory letter from the Department of Commerce dated December 7, 1929.24 In this connection it is pertinent to point out that the effecting of the proposed reciprocal arrangement containing a provision similar to Article 8 of the Canadian arrangement25 will eliminate this difficulty.

Finally, the Department does not understand the statement that you report was made by a French official that France is not interested at this time in permission to operate planes commercially over United States territory on a reciprocal basis, since in the past the [Page 536] French Steamship Line operated a ship-to-shore service and it is the Department’s understanding that it would wish to recommence this service next spring.

Please report promptly all developments in this matter.

I am [etc.]

For the Secretary of State:
Francis White
  1. Latter not printed.
  2. Not printed.
  3. Not printed.
  4. See note of August 29, 1929, to the Canadian Chargé vol. ii, p. 111.