U.S., Japan Reportedly Near Aviation Pact

U.S. and Japanese negotiators were very close to concluding an agreement to boost air service between the two countries, government officials said. There were tentative plans for a news conference today involving Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and Transportation Secretary Rodney Slater should Japanese negotiators get approval from Tokyo, the officials said. If agreement is reached on a pact, U.S. airlines with limited rights under the current agreement--American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Continental Airlines and one more carrier to be named--would be able to offer as many as 90 flights a week. The so-called incumbent U.S. carriers under the original 1952 agreement--Northwest Airlines, United Airlines and Federal Express--would get many of their original unrestricted rights restored. In return, All Nippon Airways would join Japan Airlines as the second Japanese carrier without restrictions on routes or number of flights to the U.S. A Japanese official said this week that Tokyo had agreed to limited code-sharing to allow joint marketing of flights by U.S. airlines. The United States had insisted that the pact contain a mechanism for further liberalization of the aviation market past its expiration date.