Global Aerospace Trade Association [Open; IC]

[UniversalCommons]

A letter from Dynamic Motors, PPC (Public Private Consortium) and Kai Commercial House, RFS (Registered Family Syndicate) both Board Members of the Space Studies Institute

From: Robert Kai, Trustee Space Studies Institute, Mimi Ohyes, Trustee Space Studies Institute
Office: Space Studies Institute, 1050 Liberty Boulevard, Deek Brown Ward, Liberty Prefect, Universal Commons 10A 50C
Re: GATA

To the GATA,
While we operate at LEO, the Universal Commons represented by the Space Studies Institute has extensive holdings in near space just below LEO. We are wondering how this will affect our commercial routes. We are interested in what you have to offer and have transport which operates both in near space and the slipstream; electric passenger jets, long range high altitude solar electric airships, high altitude solar and wind energy collection kites, tensegrity structures as well as near space sky stations for the launch of vehicles into LEO.
It is our wish to further understand your organizations stand on the use of Near Space. We seek clarification to this effect. This will affect further contact with your international organization.

Regards,

Robert Kai, Trustee Space Studies Institute, Mimi Ohyes Trustee Space Studies Institute

[United World Order]

DEUTSCHE LUFTAHRT BEFEHL
ORDENITE AEROSPACE COMMAND

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A DISPATCH TO THE GLOBAL AEROSPACE TRADE ASSOCIATION:

Addressed to those within The Global Aerospace Trade Association,

The Ordenite Aerospace Command which is the official space faring organization representing Ordenite influence in space and beyond. In the spirit of cooperation between fellow Dienstadi nation states and make it known that the Ordenite Aerospace Command representing the Fourth Reich of the United World Order wish to join The Global Aerospace Trade Association.

[The Macabees]

Enrík Cardíl looked at the Ordenite letter with some consternation. He licked his thumb and index fingers and pinched a piece of paper out from a stack on his expansive dark oak desk. Almost too big, he thought. Indeed, much of it went unused because it was outside of his reach. If those marginal areas were at all used it was when they were covered by papers that would accumulate there until Enrík found the time to go through them again and, for the most part, throw them away. Otherwise, everything he owned was in a radius around his chair and in the various drawers that went up and down the table's flanks.

There was a second letter, from Dynamic Motors and a partner company. The Macabean attaché put the Ordenite letter down, leaving it for later, and read the other one. They wanted to know how GATA would impact their own commercial routes and their own endeavors in Earth's orbit. This one was easy enough, so Cardíl set out to respond to it first.

Mr. Robert Kai,

It is with great pleasure that I write to you to respond to your inquiries about GATA and how it may affect your own, and your partners', investments in low-, mid-, and high-earth orbit. I cannot speak for certain economic impacts that are inevitable, such as the falling cost of orbital transportation of personnel and material. Neither can I deny that GATA will increase congestion in orbital trade routes. But both of these things are inevitable and they would exist without GATA. The Global Aerospace Trade Association is merely a method by which we can better hedge our investments, or at least reduce the risk of severe damage to our economies by bonding together against common threats to our orbital and near space commercial flight routes. Indeed, although GATA will undoubtedly accelerate competition in your key markets — again, competition that has already arisen independently of the association —, all the same, I highly encourage you to see it as an opportunity and not as a threat.

The truth is that the pie is enlarging. There are countries who have never heard of this technology or, if they have heard of it, they have never invested in it. For example, thanks to GATA the Golden Throne now enjoys unparalleled access to Gothic markets, something that was almost unthinkable even just a decade ago due to the great distances involved in seaborne trade. The economic impact on us has been unquestionable, even in a time of growing conflict and war. Thus, although GATA ushers in a new era of global competition in aerospace trade, it does so in an arena that does not stop growing.

As for how our trade routes impact your infrastructure, well that is a question of respecting established flight routes, much like one must respect naval lanes that are set aside for commercial travel. Similarly to how flight paths must be respected, as well. Otherwise, the impact on your infrastructure — much like the impact on our own extensive infrastructure — ought to be negligible, or at least largely irrelevant.

I hope that this answers your questions. Please do not hesitate to reach out to me with further inquiries.

Kind regards,

Enrík Cardíl
Macabeean attaché to GATA

He set the freshly written letter on a bin toward the end of his desk, although still within reach, and then picked up the Ordenite communiqué once again.

This would be a polarizing decision, that went without saying. Not only had the Ordenites fought a war against four of GATA's members, but its Nazi regime was almost universally condemned. Still, GATA was an association of peace and there cannot be peace without trade, and with that philosophy in his heart Cardíl set out to respond to the Reich's request for entry.

Whom it may concern at the Deutsche Luftahrt Befehl,

Your membership into GATA has been accepted.

I feel that it is my duty to explain to you why the Reich's request has been approved. A wise man once said, "If goods don't cross borders, troops will." It is an incredible thing to see men of all races, nationality, and preference at the market in peace. Indeed, trade is one of the few things that binds men together against their weaker senses, those that lead to conflict and violence. The Reich is a country of death and war, something which seems opposite of what GATA does and stands for. Perhaps this is true, but then I think it is doubly as important to accept your membership into the trade association.

You see, by approving your request to GATA, I do my part in helping to undermine your raison d'etre. I help to bring a contradicting force to your world. An opportunity to open your people's minds. Perhaps it will come to naught. Perhaps the role that GATA will come to play in bringing about a cultural revolution in your state will be minimal or nil. But at least I try, and that is all a man can do.

And so know that I accept the membership of a government that represents hate only because I truly believe in the utilitarianism of my actions. At the very least, by helping to enrich your government, I make war less attractive for you to wage.

That being said, I do genuinely welcome you to GATA and I hope that the Reich will remain a member for a long time to come. Trade is mutually beneficial and no matter our ideological differences, there is much to gain from being commercial partners in arms. Finally, I leave you with a challenge: bring the Kraven Reich into the fold. How better to fight against the liberal culture of capitalism than by using GATA to grow your trade with other states of similar ideologies to your own?

Kind regards,

Enrík Cardíl
Macabeean attaché to GATA

Cardíl chuckled, then left the letter in the same bin that he placed the last one in. Before moving on to other matters he ripped a post-it from a pad in a drawer to his right, scribbled on it, and slapped it on his response to the Ordenites. It gave his aide certain instructions, instructions that would facilitate the letter's leaking to the public and to the other members of GATA, so that they too would know the logic behind the Reich's entry.

[United Vallerian Republic]

The United Vallerian Republic would like to participate in GATA. As A small fledgling nation with a weak and tentative economy, the UVR would appreciate a boost. Our main Exports would be Fish, armaments, vehicles, IT, and we also sell WW2 - Era equipment. We would appreciate any trade as long as it confines to our nation's laws, and wish this venture will be successful!

[Panama Coalition]

The Panama Coalition, as a peaceful nation with broad economic interests, world trade and maritime and air trade routes worldwide, is extremely interested in joining to the Global Aerospace Trade Association for the peaceful, scientific and commercial development of atmospheric routes. To this end, we also have ample naval and air defense capabilities to protect commercial routes.

Therefore, it is our desire to join to the Global Aerospace Trade Association.


William I
Supreme Federal President
Federal Republic of Panama Coalition

[The Macabees]

"Things have begun to smell stale around here," said Karl Bergens, Enrik's immensely rotund boss. The man's buttons on a shirt too small to contain the shape of his fat rolls seemed about to burst from the pressure, much like the hair had burst off his head over the years. He smelled too. Karl Bergens had met the height of his career long ago and now he excelled at making his subordinates' lives difficult by giving them instructions for things he didn't know how to do. His nose was curling now. "The big dogs aren't happy. They're saying we're missing our quarterly growth marks."

'Quarterly growth marks.' That's how they, the bureaucrats in the Imperial Bureaucracy, measured GATA's success. It was the metric that the Kríerlords used to report to His Imperial Majesty, or so they said. That the emperor truly stood so up-to-date with GATA Enrik doubted very much. Besides, they hadn't been hitting the quarterly growth rates for quite some time now and this was the first time he was getting complained to about it. It seemed they were shipping so much military equipment through the atmospheric routes these days that civilian trade routes were a backdrop to the association's value. Not that the association had anything to do with the war effort in Gholgoth, but the way it had incentivized the construction of the necessary infrastructure throughout much of the region and elsewhere was most certainly a boon to the commanders who had to figure out how to supply a war about 40,000 kilometers away.

But now someone had poked their nose somewhere and the growth metrics had become relevant again. "Maybe we can start a marketing campaign, sir," was what he answered.

"What the hell is a marketing campaign going to do for us, Cardíl?" asked Bergens, who took another bite of the blue jelly donut he had brought with him to work. Some of the gooey insides dripped onto his pant leg and the man swiped it up with his finger, smearing it down the length of his thigh, and plopped his thick, greasy finger right into his mouth.

Enrik scratched his head. "Well, I'm thinking of an ad campaign that educates the public on how GATA has impacted them in their everyday lives. How greater access to the Haize communication technologies industry has helped lower the cost of phones and other electronics throughout the empire, for example. Or, how cheaper access to Mokan drugs have helped countless millions afford the prescriptions they need to combat their illnesses and pains. Here's one I'm especially proud of. Imagine a smiling, gruff-looking, hardworking autoworker with a hand on the car he just built with his own sweat and tears. He's handing it off to a Gothic family—"

"What kind of Gothic?" interrupted Bergens. The donut was gone and he was sucking on those pudgy tactiles of his.

What the fuck does it matter? Enrik thought. "It does not necessarily matter," was what he said. "It could be someone who represents them all. We can test what kind of Gothic actor gives us the most traction. There are so many interesting things we can do and everything is measurable, we'll know exactly how our investment is performing. I've already put out a request for proposals, just to see how much it might cost us."

"Woah, woah, woah," said the fat man, waving his hands. "Did you say cost? This is going to cost money? Our budget is tight as it is."

"You need to spend money to make money, right?" Enrik hadn't sounded so much like a salesman ever in his life, but he was desperate.

Bossman was right, things around here were getting stale, and it wasn't just the numbers. This wasn't the kind of job he had seen himself working at thirty-five. Sure, the Imperial Bureaucracy could be a lucrative career and when he first took the attaché job he saw it as an opportunity for growth, but it was a boring job. Apart from the few letters he wrote, the rest of it was endless meetings and a lot of nothing. Surfing the internet on the government's dollars might have been another man's dream job, but it wasn't his. He wanted to work doing something he liked, and he liked pretty much anything as long as he could use his brain to make things better. He was getting desperate because this was an opportunity to do just that and if he didn't get it, Enrik figured he'd let himself get fat and bald just like Bergens.

The boss' eyes narrowed, "Easy to say when it's not your money. How much we talkin'?"

Enrik cleared his throat. "I received several pitches. The one I favor was quoted at, uh, 25,000 ríokmarks a month, for a twelve-month contract. The lowest was priced at 15,000 ríokmarks and the highest at 50,000 ríokmarks, and all of which, uh, will also entail further costs when it comes time to acquire advertising space. Um, I've estimated a budget of about seven million total."

"Seven million!" shouted Bergens. "Where in your tiny little brain did you ever think I'd approve a seven million ríokmark budget for marketing? You must mad, man. And what good is all of this 'educating the public' going to do us?"

This was the moment Enrik was waiting for. "You see, we're not going to be educating our public? At least, not all of it. We're going to target immigrants and foreigners, we're going to show our ads in magazines read in foreign countries and on websites visited by foreign users. We're going to educate outsiders how rich and great our lives are, thanks to GATA. And they're going to clamor to their governments that they want that lifestyle, they want that wealth, and they're going to believe that GATA is the answer to their cries of despair. And you're going to see that 'quarterly growth mark' you want."

"Okay," said the boss, his multi-layered chin jiggling as he spoke, "I'll go along with this one, Cardíl. But there ain't no seven million dollars sitting around anywhere. You said there was a cheaper option, explore that one and squeeze the shit out of it. And I expect this to work, otherwise it's your ass that's going under the bus. You get me?" He walked away before Enrik could respond.

He smiled. He had asked for more than he needed, knowing that he'd get less. He didn't mind the threat at the end. If this plan didn't work, he knew what the job would turn into. He knew if he messed up once, he'd get stuck for life. So he went back to his office and got back to work, because this marketing idea sure as hell was going to pay dividends, one way or the other.

Back at the office, he noticed two fresh requests for entry into the association. It looked as if Fortune was already smiling upon him. He started writing their acceptance letters right away.

N.B. Both United Vallerian Republic and Panama Coalition have been accepted into GATA.

[The Technocratic Syndicalists]

To: Global Aerospace Trade Association
From: Arcaneian Department of Commerce
Subject: GATA membership
Encryption: SHA-512 Cryptographic Hash

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On behalf of the government of the Federal Republic of Arcaenia the Arcaenian Department of Commerce would like to submit an official application for entry into the Global Aerospace Trade Association. This request comes via Executive Oder 14909 signed by President Samuel Hayden which instructs the Arcaneian Department of Commerce of the Federal Republic of Arcaenia to immediately submit an application of entry into Global Aerospace Trade Association on behalf of the Federal Republic government. Should this application be accepted the GATA terms will be be subject to ratification by the Arcaenian senate before the government of the Federal Republic of Arcaenia may act in provision with the terms of the GATA provision.

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Signed,
Paul Engels,
Secretary of Commerce, Federal Republic of Arcaenia

To: Global Aerospace Trade Association
From: Arcaneian Aerospace Research Command (ARC)
Subject: Hyperion Single-Stage-to-Orbit Heavy Lift Reusable Launch Vehicle
Encryption: SHA-512 Cryptographic Hash

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The Aersopace Research command (ARC, prounounced "ark"), the primary civilian orbital launch, spaceflight, and aerodynamic research agency of the government of the Federal Republic of Arcaenia, would like to offer the use of it's Hyperion VTHL SSTO to the member states of GATA, pending Arcaenian entry into the organization. The Hyperion is an unmanned, fully reusable, single stage to orbit vehicle in the heavy-lift launch class and is operated by both ARC as well the Arcaenian Air Force's Space Command. With the ability to both place and retrieve heavy payloads into orbit as well as cross-range capability on the order of thousands of miles the Hyperion would appear to be ideally suited for the orbital trade network that GATA is trying to establish. The Hyperion is a zero-emissions vehicle which uses hydrogen and oxygen fuel and is capable of landing on most runways suitable for wide-body airliners or strategic airlifters and is designed to be serviced in existing aircraft hangars rather than dedicated facilities.

Signed,
Dr. Thomas Becker,
Deputy Administrator, Arcaenian Aerospace Research Command

[Houdou]

The Imperial House
Of Houdou

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Request to enter the Global Aerospace Trade Association

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To whom it may concern,

The Empire of Houdou would like to join the Global Aerospace Trade Association and agree to all of its provisions.

For centuries the Houdou people have prospered through free trade with foreigners. The Imperial House strongly believe in the future of hypersonic trade route, and indeed, over the past years, the GATA network has more than pulled its weight in enabling international trade between once-distant nations.

We already have pre-existing facilities for the landing of hypersonic crafts, built during the last five-years plan for our space programme. With our entry into GATA, pre-existing facilities shall be revamped and expanded to accommodate trade aircrafts from GATA.

In addition, I am willing to donate $50 million from my own personal discretionary budget to support the cause of GATA, should our application be accepted, so to fund its continuous expansion.

Signed,
Emperor Shinmu

[Eitoan]

The Republic of Eitoan
Department of Foreign Affairs

To: The Global Aerospace and Trade Association
Subject: Accession of The Republic of Eitoan to The Global Aerospace and Trade Associaiton

At the request of President Ephriam Shrudlu I have been instructed to request initiation of a Treaty of Accession of The Republic of Eitoan to the Global Aerospace and Trade Association. In the broadest sense, the government of The Republic of Eitoan views the goals of GATA to be compatible with ours both in terms of enhancing the benefits of expanded aerospace trade and transport for our people and our businesses, and the wider implications of treaty accession in safeguarding Eitoan trade routes and reducing the risk of armed conflict. President Shrdlu has instructed me to address the terms of the treaty with respect to our current state, and future plans to meet any concerns of GATA. These are as follows:

I. All members of the Global Aerospace Trade Association agree to defend the neutrality of the atmospheric trade networks that fall under the jurisdiction of the association. The jurisdiction, in turn, is defined as all atmospheric trade routes between member nations.

There is no conflict between this provision and Eitoan trade policy, or with Eitoan military doctrine.

II. An attack on a neutral trade line is to be interpreted by all member nations as a declaration of war. Member nations are only obligated to defend trade routes. In the event of an attack, GATA nations ought to organize a joint-defense. Member nations are, however, not obligated to defend each other proper.

Here too there is no conflict. The issue of joint-defense will be addressed by the Cabinet in the event of any such attack on a neutral trade line under GATA aegis as needs arise.

III. Member nations agree to reduce tariffs and quotas on goods imported via atmospheric transportation to levels equal to goods imported via alternative transportation. In other words, atmospheric trade shall not be discriminated against.

At this time there are no differences on tariffs or quotas based on mode of transportation.

IV. GATA has no jurisdiction over general trade policy.

The Republic of Eitoan recognizes this provision. This is to be stressed to members of the upper house (Ghastak) in consideration of a Treaty of Accession.

V. Member nations who fail to meet any of the association's constraints will be automatically ejected, and those countries' atmospheric trade routes will no longer be protected by GATA law.

A review of GATA constraints show no conflict with current Eitoan law. We accept this provision.

VI. In the event of "marginal neutrality," or — in other words — a situation where a government feels obligated to raise barriers to trade against individual nations (even member nations), GATA respects the right of a sovereign nation to set its trade terms in accord with its national security policy.

This is acceptable to us.

VII. If any GATA members find themselves at war with other GATA members, they can choose to restrict imports from and exports to those countries they are at war with. Third party GATA members are under no obligation to help either side, or protect those routes. However, trade routes between third party nations and those at war are still neutral, and an attack on those will be seen as an attack on GATA — the aggressor will be subjected to rule VI.

This is also acceptable to us.

It is our sincere belief that international agreements such as GATA will bring the benefits of reduced costs, improved choice, and expanded opportunities for Eitoan consumers, workers, and businesses. We expect that such opportunities will also spur private initiatives in the use of aerospace transportation in underserved regions of Eitoan, thereby reducing the demand on infrastructure spending and maintenance while increasing employment opportunities in the more remote territories.

Thank you.


As required by the 1932 Amendment IV.B.7 to the Constitution of Eitoan, copies of this initiative have been provided to all 35 members of the upper house (Ghastak).

Randall Field
Secretary for Foreign Affairs
The Republic of Eitoan

[McNernia]

TO:GATA Admissions
FROM:HM Ministry's of Foreign Affairs, Commerce and Business and Transport
CC:
SEC:STANDARD PROCEDURAL
SUB:Entrance to the Alliance

HM Government after reviewing the provisions of the GATA treaty are most inclined to ask for admission into the alliance. The Mcnernian government is prepared to offer facilities for maintence of international vehicles. And assets to move trade.