At the invitation of the Irish Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport, Administrator Feng Zhenglin headed a CAAC delegation to Ireland on September 24-26.

Feng Zhenglin held talks with Shane Ross, the Irish Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport on expanding the bilateral traffic rights arrangement. The two sides also exchanged views on increasing cooperation in aviation leasing, growing China-Europe civil aviation ties and their participation in ICAO’s activities. Feng and Ross signed the MOU between the Civil Aviation Administration of China and the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport of Ireland on the Traffic Rights Arrangement afterwards. China and Ireland signed an air services agreement in 1998. The newly reached traffic rights arrangement made specific provisions on the route map, capacity, the fifth traffic rights, business cooperation, etc., which laid down an even more solid legal foundation for air transport businesses of the two sides to open the China-Ireland route and conduct business cooperation. Both sides expressed hope that Chinese and Irish aviation enterprises could actively explore the aviation markets of the two countries, take advantage of the newly concluded traffic rights arrangement, and open the route between China and Ireland as soon as possible.