A new agreement signed by the European Union (EU) and Australia looks set to pave the way for more flights between the two regions.

The pact allows European carriers to operate services between any member state of the EU and Australia, removing previous nationality restrictions from these routes.

Extra flights from the UK to Australia may eventually result from the agreement. Currently, more than four million travellers fly between Europe and Australia, according to European commission (EC) figures.

"This [pact] will pave the way for a comprehensive aviation agreement involving cooperation in key aviation areas such as competition, safety and the environment," commented Jacques Barrot, EC vice president for transport.

The agreement comes a month after the open skies pact between the EU and the USA came into effect, resulting in the creation of numerous new routes between the UK and American destinations.

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