Congress looks to ground Emirates air route

Congress is greeting the planned March 12 opening of a new Emirates airline route between Athens, Greece, and Newark, New Jersey, by trying to prevent it from getting off the ground. 

Twenty-five House members from New York and New Jersey — almost two-thirds of the total delegation — wrote to President Donald Trump on March 7 with a request that he cancel the route until the United Arab Emirates (UAE) stops subsidizing its largest airline. The escalating trade dispute risks roiling US relations with a key counterterrorism ally in the Middle East, but lawmakers say US workers are getting swindled and must be protected.

"It is imperative that your Administration take quick and decisive action to defend US interests abroad and ensure that US airlines and their American workers have a fair and equal opportunity to compete," the letter states. "Further, it would be prudent for your Administration to bar the commencement of the Athens to Newark flight until it has had the opportunity to negotiate a meaningful resolution which addresses the ongoing subsidies provided by the United Arab Emirates and Qatar to their flagged carriers."

Senators are also looking into the matter.