Open Skies question?

Hi all,

Sorry if this issue has been discussed before, but I was reading a rather interesting letter in the Skyport newspaper today, and it raised a rather important question…

What will happen if America does not meet its end of the Open Skies agreement?

As most of you should know by now, the Open Skies agreement is due to to come into effect at the end of this month and we have all heard that some airlines have now managed to obtain precious slots at LHR, and I know that the amount of money that airlines have to pay in order to get these slots at LHR is huge (as in multiple millions £/$’s), but what will happen if the agreement falls apart, and what impact will it have on the airlines; not only those that have managed to get slots at LHR, but those airlines that are proposing to operate transatlantic services from other countries?

Any thoughts or suggestions would be appreciated.