The U.S.-Nigeria Air Transport Agreement, which has been provisionally applied since 2000, entered into force on May 13, 2024. The agreement includes provisions that allow for unrestricted capacity and frequency of services, open route rights, a liberal charter regime, and open code-sharing opportunities between the two countries.

“This bilateral agreement establishes a modern civil aviation relationship with Nigeria consistent with U.S. Open Skies international aviation policy and with commitments to high standards of aviation safety and security,” according to Matthew Miller, Spokesman for the United States Department of State.

“This agreement with Nigeria is a step forward in liberalizing the international civil aviation sector in Africa and further expands our strong economic and commercial partnership, promotes people-to-people ties, and creates new opportunities for airlines, travel companies, and customers.

“With this agreement, air carriers can provide more affordable, convenient, and efficient air services to travelers and shippers, which in turn promotes tourism and commerce.”

The Department of State, in consultation with the Departments of Transportation and Commerce, negotiates agreements with foreign governments that provide the framework for commercial air service. 

Since 1992, United States policy has been to seek, to the fullest extent possible, “Open Skies” air transport agreements, which eliminate government interference in commercial airline decisions about routes, capacity, and pricing, so that airlines can provide more affordable, convenient, and efficient air service to consumers, promoting increased travel and trade, and spurring high-quality job creation and economic growth. 

Open Skies agreements expand cooperative marketing opportunities between airlines, liberalize charter regulations, improve flexibility for airline operations, and commit both governments to high standards of safety and security. 

They are pro-consumer, pro-competition, and pro-growth, and facilitate countless new cultural links worldwide.  According to U.S. Airlines for Open Skies, an advocacy group, U.S. Open Skies policy has brought millions of new international visitors to the United States, supporting more than 15 million U.S. tourism and hospitality jobs.

America’s Open Skies policy has facilitated and accompanied U.S. airline globalization.  By allowing U.S. air carriers unrestricted market access to our partners’ markets as well as rights to fly to points in-between and beyond, Open Skies agreements provide maximum operational flexibility worldwide for U.S. airlines. 

Many agreements also provide additional rights for all-cargo carriers to fly routes that do not connect to their home country, which have been critical to creating and facilitating global air cargo supply chains.

The United States has reciprocal Open Skies air transport agreements in place with over 130 partners.  Over 70 percent of international departures from the United States now fly to Open Skies partners. 

According to the U.S. Travel Association, 75 million international visitors spend nearly $250 billion in the United States annually, benefiting American jobs across the aviation, travel, and tourism sector, including hotels, restaurants, attractions, retailers, and domestic air carriers.  The United States continues to seek new Open Skies partners, which will continue to drive down costs for travelers and promote people-to-people interactions, information sharing, and international business opportunities.

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