Cablegate: Air France On Pnr, No-Fly and Cnil

VZCZCXRO2005
OO RUEHAG RUEHDF RUEHIK RUEHLZ
DE RUEHFR #5958 2490809
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 060809Z SEP 06
FM AMEMBASSY PARIS
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 1043
INFO RUCNMEM/EU MEMBER STATES PRIORITY
RHMFIUU/DEPT OF HOMELAND SECURITY WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RULSDMK/DEPT OF TRANSPORTATION WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS PRIORITY 1728
RUEAWJA/DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE WASHDC PRIORITY

UNCLAS PARIS 005958

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

STATE FOR EUR/WE/ EB/TRA, L, S/CT
USEU FOR MORENSKI

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EAIR ECON PTER ASEC FR
SUBJECT: AIR FRANCE ON PNR, NO-FLY AND CNIL

REF: A. PARIS 5674
B. STATE 125421

1. (SBU) SUMMARY. Air France is confident that it will be
able to transmit PNR data to the USG on October 1 with or
without a new US-EU PNR agreement. The airline at present
has no plans to file with the France Data Privacy Commission
(CNIL) for approval of its current No Fly procedures,
contrary to what we have heard from the GOF (ref A). Air
France has also confirmed that the GOF has signaled
informally that it no longer needs to notify the French
border police (PAF) of suspected No Fly &hits8 before
notifying the USG. END SUMMARY.

2. (SBU) PNR. Guy Tardieu (protect throughout), chief of
staff to Air France-KLM Chairman and CEO Jean-Cyril Spinetta,
told Economic Minister-Counselor August 31 that Air France
is confident that the airline will be able to continue
transmission of Passenger Name Record (PNR) data to the USG
on October 1, whether or not a new U.S.-EU PNR agreement is
in place by September 30. Tardieu admitted that the carrier
would do so in a legal limbo, but expected no immediate
problem with the continuation of current procedures. He
cautioned, however, that the longer PNR transmission proceeds
without such an agreement, the greater the chance that
pressure will grow for action by national data privacy
authorities.

3. (SBU) NO FLY / CNIL. Contrary to what Embassy
officials heard from the GOF last week (ref A), Air France
currently has no plans to file formally with the French Data
Privacy Commission (CNIL) for approval of its No Fly
procedures. Tardieu said that he has had informal
discussions with the CNIL, and believes that the CNIL is
prepared to let the status quo reign until DHS introduces its
APIS Quick Query (AQQ) name check system. Air France hopes -
optimistically in our view - that AQQ may obviate the need
for CNIL oversight/approval of passenger data transmission.
(Comment. This is not the first time we have received
different renditions of the state-of-play on CNIL issues from
the GOF and Air France. End Comment.)

4. (SBU) NO FLY / PAF. Air France confirmed that the GOF
has told the airline informally that it need no longer notify
the French Border Police (PAF) of suspected No Fly &hits8
before notifying the USG. (See ref A for initial report.)
Tardieu said that he does not expect to receive this
instruction in writing from the GOF, citing &sovereignty8
sensitivities.
Please visit Paris' Classified Website at:
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/paris/index.c fm

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