American Airlines has told the US Department of Transportation that it does not plan to use most of its China frequencies through the end of the winter 2023/24 season. The US major currently operates four weekly USA-China frequencies between its Dallas/Forth Worth (DFW) hub and Shanghai (PVG) and intends to resume three additional weekly DFW-PVG services starting in mid-January 2024. However, "American does not currently anticipate using its remaining 14 weekly US–China frequencies during the 2023/2024 winter season", it says in a 13 September motion and notice to the DOT. The airline requests that the department grant a motion to extend the "dormancy/start-up condition waiver" for up to 17 of its weekly USA-mainland China frequencies beyond 28 October through the end of the 2023/2024 winter season. It notes that in March 2020, the DOT granted all US carriers holding limited-entry international route authority, including to serve China, a waiver of the start-up and dormancy conditions applicable to their authorities. The waiver was extended "several times" with respect to China, the airline highlights. In the DOT's most recent waiver extension, it required US carriers to notify the department by 1 October of limited-entry markets in which they will not resume service beginning 29 October. It also invited US carriers to seek further extension of the waiver beyond 28 October for specific city-pair limited-entry service "where the carriers can demonstrate that circumstances warrant". "American submits that circumstances justify an extension of the waiver for the full winter 2023/2024 season for 17 of its weekly US–China frequencies, including the 14 that American will not use and, to the extent necessary, the three frequencies that American plans to resume operating in mid-January 2024," the carrier says. "The department has undertaken laudable efforts to reinstate frequencies for US and Chinese air carriers so as to ensure parity for airlines of each country. However, despite these efforts, the majority of pre-pandemic frequencies remain suspended and likely will remain so through at least the 2023/2024 winter season." American adds that "pending market conditions and governmental agreements", it may request a further dormancy waiver at a later date nearing the 2024 summer season.

The US Federal Aviation Administration will allow airlines flexibility on slot usage at airports in the New York City area through 27 October 2024. "The agency continues to expect that airlines will operate larger aircraft to transport more passengers, have sufficient ground crews to service the larger aircraft, and make sure passengers are fully informed about any possible disruptions," the FAA says in its statement announcing the measure. It adds that the number of certified air traffic controllers at New York Terminal Radar Approach Control (N90) – which provides ATC services to overhead flights in the Northeast corridor and to New York City area airports including JFK, LaGuardia and Newark – is "still not sufficient to allow the FAA to handle normal traffic levels". In August, the FAA extended through 28 October its limited waiver of minimum slot-usage requirements at New York-serving airports JFK, LaGuardia and Newark and at Washington National. US carriers had requested an extension via their trade group Airlines for America in a 7 August letter sent to the FAA. The FAA had originally issued the notice on 22 March in order to give carriers "the ability to reduce operations during the peak summer travel period, which are likely to be exacerbated by the effects of air traffic controller staffing shortfall". The waiver was originally set to end on 15 September. In is 15 September announcement, the FAA says it continues to work on a long-term solution "to solve the chronic low levels of fully certified air traffic controllers at N90".

Australia’s Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) is proposing to deny authorisation to Qantas and China Eastern airlines in coordinating passenger and cargo transportation until March 2024 as it may breach cooperation laws.
“We are concerned that the authorisation would provide Qantas and China Eastern with the opportunity and incentive to increase prices, compared to what they would charge absent the alliance, by limiting or delaying the introduction of additional capacity on the Sydney-Shanghai route as passenger demand continues to grow,” says ACCC Commissioner Anna Brakey. She adds that the commission is not convinced potential benefits will outweigh “likely harm to competition” from Qantas and China Eastern’s proposed coordination. The commission had previously authorised the alliance in 2015 with conditions, and in 2021 without conditions due to exceptional circumstances related to the Covid-19 pandemic, and its associated effects on travel. The parties applied for re-authorisation of their alliance in November 2022 until 31 March 2024 and the ACCC granted interim authorisation on 30 March this year. “A key difference between now and the previous authorisations is we have not been provided with sufficient evidence that the coordination would lead to additional services on other routes between Australia and China,” states Brakey, as travel demand between the two countries are likely to grow as Chinese tour groups return. China Eastern is the only airline flying direct between Sydney and Shanghai with Qantas planning to resume flights in late October. The Chinese carrier is also planning to resume flights between Shanghai and Brisbane on 31 October. The commission is seeking responses to the draft determination by 6 October, before making its final decision Meanwhile, the interim authorisation remains in place and Qantas and China Eastern have been invited to make submissions on a transition to end authorisation.