EU Vows Better Air Passenger Data Deal

The European Union vowed Tuesday to finalize an air passenger data agreement with the United States despite a legal setback in Europe.

The EU’s administrative arm, the European Commission, issued a statement after the European Court of Justice blocked a deal that required European airlines to give passenger data to U.S. authorities.

The court said the deal, agreed by EU member states and the European Commission two years ago, was illegal because it was founded on an inappropriate legal basis. The court gave the commission until Sept. 30 to come up with an acceptable arrangement.

Under the now-overturned agreement, European airlines were required to provide U.S. authorities with 34 items of information about each passenger within 15 minutes of a plane taking off for the United States.

The commission is committed to working with all parties involved to find an appropriate arrangement by that time, a spokesman said.