Why the Australian government blocks some foreign airlines

Negotiations occur between governments behind closed doors and can be part of broader talks over trade and tourism to create bespoke arrangements known as bilateral air services agreements. There are thousands of these agreements between countries globally, and Australia has more than 100 of them. Some agreements allow a country's airlines in without any restrictions, others have limits in place around the number of seats, or services, they can provide in and out of the country each week. The federal infrastructure and transport department says it considers the views of international airlines and airports, as well as tourism and trade…