Airlines within the United States and the United Kingdom have rallied together to pressure their governments to open travel between the two countries.

The bosses of leading airlines have written to senior government figures in both nations, calling for an expedited travel corridor. 

With vaccination rollouts well underway within both nations, the aviation sector wants to ease travel restrictions on the normally busy transatlantic travel route.

The letter to US Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg and UK Secretary of State for Transport Grant Shapps stated:

“Air travel is a critical enabler of trade between our countries that was worth US$273 billion in 2019,” 

Of those who have joined forces includes, British Airways, American Airlines, United Airlines, Delta Airlines, JetBlue and Industry Group Airlines for America.

“Public health must guide the reopening of international air travel, and we are confident that the aviation industry possesses the right tools, based on data and science, to enable a safe and meaningful restart to transatlantic travel”

The letter signifies a rare joining of forces between airlines that are normally arch-rivals. The CEOs who signed the letter have proposed a summit to explore how to safely and swiftly re-open the critical route between the UK and US.

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