800.796/8–2144: Telegram
The Secretary of State to the Ambassador in the United Kingdom (Winant)
6662. From Berle for Beaverbrook. In anticipation of the meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Air Transport on the 28th instant, the following is an accurate statement of the American policy:
It is now obvious that in many parts of the world the war area has contracted and civil needs are steadily reasserting themselves. This is notably true in the Western Mediterranean, North Africa, and the Middle East, where civil life is reestablishing itself as the war recedes northward. In substance, war conditions no longer prevail in the southern part of the Western Hemisphere. The Pacific, of course, continues to be definitely an area of active military operations, as does Europe, with the exclusion of Portugal, Spain, and most of Italy.
The extension of civil aviation to regions now open for such communciations appears to be dictated by the highest considerations of humanity and common sense, as well as by the inherent interest in reestablishing, so far as possible, normal commercial life. Exclusion of civil aviation from these areas on war grounds becomes increasingly less justifiable, and on any other grounds wholly unjustifiable. The Governments of Great Britain and of the United States alike hope for an international conference which should discuss all of these matters, but it is realized that an international conference, if completely successful and resulting in full agreement even in details, will not result in the immediate creation of implementing machinery, with the result that a considerable time must elapse before the results of such a conference can be translated into actual air communications and service. With this in mind, the United States feels that an ad interim arrangement should be immediately adopted under and by which, to the extent that equipment is released from strictly military use, airlines can be established serving the principal centers of population, including Latin America. This involves the securing of transit [Page 532] and landing rights by the United States and by Great Britain for the interim period to and in the centers to be served. The British Government is already advised of the routes and landing points which the United States proposes to establish, and it is understood that they will tell us the routes and landing points which they are asking.
The Government of the United States likewise notes that in substance the B.O.A.C. is doing this now, since it operates as a militarized service where this is convenient, but as a commercial service whenever practicable, and is actually performing the service of a fare-receiving common carrier, though on a priority basis, in the areas from which the war has actually receded. The American Air Transport Service, however, is a wholly militarized line which has not been collecting fares nor performing any of the regular services of a common carrier. The disparity between these two sets of arrangements is so great as to excite considerable difficulty here, with real danger of considerable public reaction.
The routes, transit and landing rights established for the interim period would, of course, be subject to discussion at the international conference, perhaps separated from the discussion of air navigation matters, so that the jurisdiction of that conference shall not be foreclosed.
In handling interim arrangements, it is suggested that our two Governments keep each other fully informed as we have been doing heretofore; that diplomatic cooperation will be maintained; and that no arrangements shall be made by which either party will try to effect exclusion of the other, or foreclose the legitimate rights of any other country.
In view of the rapid progress of the war in Europe, and particularly of the probability that there will be urgent necessity for air transport between North America and France before very long, the situation is of immediate importance and calls for immediate action. It is hoped accordingly that the Civil Air Transport Committee may see its way clear to agree with the American position in this regard. May we hope for a very speedy answer? [Berle.]