§41720 — Title 49 Transportation | U.S. Code

§41720 Joint venture agreements

Title 49 › Subtitle SUBTITLE VII— - AVIATION PROGRAMS › Part PART A— - AIR COMMERCE AND SAFETY › Subpart subpart ii— - economic regulation › Chapter CHAPTER 417— - OPERATIONS OF CARRIERS › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER I— - REQUIREMENTS › § 41720

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

Requires major passenger airlines to file certain joint venture deals with the Secretary at least 30 days before the deals take effect. A "joint venture agreement" means a deal made on or after January 1, 1998 between two or more major carriers about things like code-sharing, blocked-space, long-term wet leases of a substantial number of planes, frequent flyer programs, or any other cooperative arrangement that affects more than 15 percent of the carriers' total available seat miles. A "major air carrier" means a passenger airline certified under chapter 411 and listed in Carrier Group III under the rules in part 241 of title 14. Each carrier must give the Secretary a complete copy of the agreement and related papers, plus any other information the Secretary’s rules ask for. The Secretary can lengthen the 30-day waiting time: for code-sharing up to the 150th day after the initial period, and for other agreements up to the 60th day after the initial period, and must publish the reasons in the Federal Register. The Secretary may end the waiting periods at any time. Not having issued implementing rules cannot be used to delay a deal. The Secretary must quickly make a written agreement with the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division to avoid duplicate work. This law does not limit the Attorney General’s power to enforce U.S. antitrust laws.

Title 49, §41720

Transportation — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)In this section, the following definitions apply:

(1)The term “joint venture agreement” means an agreement between two or more major air carriers on or after January 1, 1998, with regard to (A) code-sharing, blocked-space arrangements, long-term wet leases (as defined in section 207.1 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations) of a substantial number (as defined by the Secretary by regulation) of aircraft, or frequent flyer programs, or (B) any other cooperative working arrangement (as defined by the Secretary by regulation) between 2 or more major air carriers that affects more than 15 percent of the total number of available seat miles offered by the major air carriers.

(2)The term “major air carrier” means a passenger air carrier that is certificated under chapter 411 of this title and included in Carrier Group III under criteria contained in section 04 of part 241 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations.

(b)At least 30 days before a joint venture agreement may take effect, each of the major air carriers that entered into the agreement shall submit to the Secretary—

(1)a complete copy of the joint venture agreement and all related agreements; and

(2)other information and documentary material that the Secretary may require by regulation.

(c)(1)The Secretary may extend the 30-day period referred to in subsection (b) until—

(A)in the case of a joint venture agreement with regard to code-sharing, the 150th day following the last day of such period; and

(B)in the case of any other joint venture agreement, the 60th day following the last day of such period.

(2)If the Secretary extends the 30-day period referred to in subsection (b), the Secretary shall publish in the Federal Register the Secretary’s reasons for making the extension.

(d)At any time after the date of submission of a joint venture agreement under subsection (b), the Secretary may terminate the waiting periods referred to in subsections (b) and (c) with respect to the agreement.

(e)The effectiveness of a joint venture agreement may not be delayed due to any failure of the Secretary to issue regulations to carry out this section.

(f)Promptly after the date of enactment of this section, the Secretary shall consult with the Assistant Attorney General of the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice in order to establish, through a written memorandum of understanding, preclearance procedures to prevent unnecessary duplication of effort by the Secretary and the Assistant Attorney General under this section and the antitrust laws of the United States, respectively.

(g)With respect to a joint venture agreement entered into before the date of enactment of this section as to which the Secretary finds that—

(1)the parties submitted the agreement to the Secretary before such date of enactment; and

(2)the parties submitted all information on the agreement requested by the Secretary,

(h)The authority granted to the Secretary under this section shall not in any way limit the authority of the Attorney General to enforce the antitrust laws as defined in the first section of the Clayton Act (15 U.S.C. 12).

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

The date of enactment of this section, referred to in subsecs. (f) and (g), is the date of enactment of Pub. L. 105–277, which was approved Oct. 21, 1998. Codification Pub. L. 105–277, § 110(f)(1), which directed amendment of subchapter I of chapter 417 by adding this section at the end, without specifying a Code title or Act, was executed by adding this section at the end of this subchapter to reflect the probable intent of Congress.

Amendments

2000—Pub. L. 106–181, § 231(b)(1), renumbered section 41716 of this title as this section. Subsec. (a)(1). Pub. L. 106–181, § 709, substituted “an agreement between two or more major air carriers” for “an agreement entered into by a major air carrier”.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 2000 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 106–181 applicable only to fiscal years beginning after Sept. 30, 1999, see section 3 of Pub. L. 106–181, set out as a note under section 106 of this title.