For Immediate Release 
Contact: Morrie Goodman, (202) 482-4883 
Arlene Mayeda, (202) 482-3809
March 14, 2000 

Washington, D.C.--Today, the United States formally charged the member states of the European Union (EU) with discrimination against U.S. airlines and aircraft manufacturers for proceeding with the EU aircraft "hushkit" regulation. 

The charge was contained in the U.S. application to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) requesting that it resolve a trans-Atlantic dispute over the EU aircraft "hushkit" regulation. 

"This action demonstrates the United States is standing up for the principle of uniform global aviation standards and the need to safeguard against regulatory measures that discriminate against free and fair trade," said Commerce Secretary William M. Daley. "Europe is the single largest export market for U.S. aerospace producers -- this hushkit regulation, which is based on a design rather than a performance standard, cannot be allowed to stand." 

The request to ICAO was made under Article 84 of the Chicago Convention, the treaty which established ICAO. This is the fourth occasion in the 55-year history of ICAO that dispute resolution under Article 84 case has been initiated and the first time such action has been sought by the United States. 

Daley said he raised concerns over the hushkit regulation during the last U.S.-EU Summit held in December 1999. Since then, Ambassador David Aaron, Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade, has held intensive consultations with the European Commission and other EU institutions aimed at reaching a settlement. 

On March 13, the European Commission unfortunately rejected a U.S. proposal that included suspension of the Article 84 case if the European Commission would submit legislation to the European Parliament to suspend the hushkit regulation.

The U.S. aerospace industry is one of the nation's largest industry sectors, contributing a $37 billion surplus to the U.S. trade balance in 1999.