The United Stated Department of Transportation (DOT) announced that it has imposed a fine of $425,000 on Ethiopian Airlines for conducting flights that utilized United Airlines’ designator code, and a fine of $400,000 on Etihad Airways for operating flights under JetBlue Airways’ designator code, both in areas where the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) had enacted a flight prohibition for US operators. The airlines have been instructed to refrain from any future violations of this nature.
An investigation conducted by the Department’s Office of Aviation Consumer Protection (OACP) found that from February 2020 to December 2022, Ethiopian Airlines operated numerous flights using the United Airlines code between Ethiopia and Djibouti within airspace restricted by the FAA for US operators. Notably, one of these prohibited flights occurred after the OACP had sent an investigation notice to Ethiopian Airlines concerning this matter. By conducting these flights, Ethiopian Airlines breached the terms of its operating authority and engaged in air transportation without the necessary DOT authorization.
An independent investigation by the OACP uncovered that from August 2022 to September 2022, Etihad Airways conducted multiple flights utilizing the JetBlue Airways code between the United Arab Emirates and the United States, within airspace that the FAA has designated as prohibited for U.S. operators. Furthermore, despite OACP informing Etihad Airways of these violations in September 2022 and November 2022, it was discovered that between January 2023 and April 2023, Etihad Airways continued to operate several additional flights under the JetBlue Airways code in the same restricted airspace. This conduct constituted a breach of the terms of its operating authority and involved air transportation activities without the requisite DOT authorization.