Gilman International Scholarship Program Fly America Act Guidance

Gilman International Scholarship Program

Fly America Act Guidance

If you are planning to use your Gilman Scholarship funds to purchase your flights for your study abroad

program, there are some restrictions you need to be aware of. The Fly America Act requires that all travelers

using funds provided by the U.S. Government use a U.S. flag carrier (including U.S. flag carrier code-shares), or a

carrier that is compliant under an Open Skies Agreement, to the final destination or to the furthest point

possible.

Gilman Scholars must comply with the Fly America Act if they use their funds to purchase their flight. Gilman

Scholars who are funding their airfare through other means do not need to comply with the Fly America Act. Fly

America Act compliance must be observed even in instances where foreign carriers are more convenient,

cheaper, or provide a preferred routing. When a grantee’s final destination is not serviced by a U.S. air carrier or

Open Skies carrier, grantees are required to fly on a compliant carrier to the furthest point possible.

Compliant Options:

• U.S Flag Carrier: An airline owned by an American company. You must ensure that the U.S. flag carrier’s

designator code is present in the flight number of the airline ticket, boarding pass, or on the

documentation for the electronic ticket.

• Code Sharing: Gilman scholars may use foreign air carriers that code share with a U.S. flag carrier. Code

sharing occurs when two or more airlines “code” the same flight as if it was their own. Compliance with

the Fly America Act is satisfied when the U.S. flag carrier's designator code is present in the flight

number of the airline ticket, boarding pass, or on the documentation for an electronic ticket.

• Open Skies Agreements: There are four Open Skies Agreements – Australia, the European Union, Japan,

and Switzerland – that meet the requirements of the Fly America Act.

o Australia: Grantees may use an Australian airline only if a point of origin/destination is either

the U.S. or Australia.

o EU: Grantees can use an EU airline to travel from the U.S. to an EU country or another country

outside of EU, when the flight originates in, arrives in, or stops in any of the EU countries prior to

landing in the destination country. An EU airline is defined as, “an airline where substantial

ownership and effective control of that airline are vested in a Member State or States, nationals

of such a state or states, or both, and the airline is licensed as a Community airline and has its

principal place of business in the territory of the European Community.” You can find a list of the

EU member states here. The EU Open Skies Agreement also includes airlines from Iceland and

Norway

o Japan: Grantees may use a Japanese airline only if a point of origin/destination is either the U.S.

or Japan.

o Switzerland: Grantees may use a Swiss airline only if a point of origin/destination is either the

U.S. or Switzerland.

If you have questions regarding the Fly America Act, or are seeking an exception beyond what is outlined in

this document, please contact your IIE/Gilman advisor for guidance.