ICAO AWAITS COMPLAINT IN U.S.-U.K. HUSHKIT ROW

ICAO AWAITS COMPLAINT IN U.S.-U.K. HUSHKIT ROW    Senior officials from the U.S. State and Commerce departments met with the president of the International Civil Aviation Organization in Montreal on Tuesday to discuss a lingering dispute with the European Union over a proposed ban on older, “hush-kitted” aircraft.
   U.S. officials indicated they likely will file a complaint sometime in the next two weeks under international aviation rules governing the settlement of disputes between nations, an ICAO spokesman said.
   Although ICAO has no enforcement power, the new U.S. position has raised tensions in the two-year battle over a proposed EU ban on hush-kitted planes, due to take effect in May. If the United States files a complaint at ICAO, the EU will not be able to propose that the European Parliament delay the ban, an EU spokeswoman said.
   The European Commission had indicated in October that it was willing to propose a delay until September 2001. That came after U.S. Transportation Secretary Rodney E. Slater and U.S. Commerce Secretary William M. Daley wrote a letter assuring the EC of an “unequivocal commitment” to develop new international noise rules within the ICAO framework.
   In December, the EC decided that the Slater-Daley letter was not enough to warrant a delay, the EU spokeswoman said.
   U.S. officials say the ban has already cost U.S. aviation concerns billions of dollars in reduced aircraft market value. The ban is particularly worrisome for all-cargo carriers that fly older freighter aircraft.