EU/US passenger information deal reached

The US and European Union (EU) have reached a deal over the sharing of passenger information on trans-Atlantic flights.

Washington has been pushing for the deal for some time, as it believes having more passenger information will help the fight against global terrorism.

The Associated Press (AP) has reported that envoys from the EU's 27 members reached a "basic political understanding," after EU and US negotiators had earlier agreed on a framework.

Details of the agreement are not yet clear, but the AP reports that less data than the US originally wanted will be handed over by EU airlines, but the US will be able to keep the information for longer.

Now the deal will be put to the parliaments of member states with legislation likely within the year.

"We'll try to finish this by August. Some countries have reserved the right to study the ins and outs of the deal," one EU ambassador told the AP.

The new pact will replace an interim agreement which was due to expire in July. Experts had feared that travel chaos could have been the result if an agreement had not been reached.