Bilateral relations between the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and the United States (U.S.) have never attracted the world’s attention more than today. This article analyses how two countries that are totally different in societies, economic systems, cultures, and values compete in the China-U.S. bilateral air services. With the trend of the liberalization as well as privatization of international air transport, the U.S. and China show two development models that influence their aviation sectors: complete liberalization vs. Socialist Market Economy (SME). The article focuses on the competition issues embodied in the China-U.S. bilateral air services and provides approaches to fair competition between the U.S. airlines and three major Chinese airlines impacted by China’s SME and the ‘Reform and Opening-up’ policy. The article further discusses the opportunity for deeper cooperation through a China-U.S. Open Skies agreement with convergent legal, economic, and institutional regimes.