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Transport ministers from the 25 EU states on Thursday approved the draft “Open Skies” agreement recently negotiated between the European Commission and the US Government. [...] The five-month postponement in implementing the deal will not delay Aer Lingus’ plans for services to San Francisco, Washington and Orlando. These will commence in October-November as planned. One report suggested that Taoiseach Bertie Ahern had negotiated some side agreement with the US which caters for this. In the wake of the ratification of the “Open Skies” deal, there was further talk about the potential benefits. In addition to Aer Lingus’ plans to launch new services, it is reported that United Airways is considering a Washington-Dublin service while Northwest is looking at a Detroit-Dublin route. There is also an expectation of lower fares as a result of the increased competition. [...]