970,636 passengers travelled with Air Malta between the start of April and the end of last August, Executive Chairman David Curmi confirmed on Thursday.

The figure represents a 26 per cent increase from the performance of the same period last year, with the highest number of passengers being carried last month with 213,963.

“As we move into the sixth month of our summer 2023 programme, we continue to see a strong demand for travel with our airline,” Mr Curmi stated.

He added that during the reporting period, Air Malta operated to 23 destinations and performed a total of 3,238 rotations with a monthly average of 637 and a weekly average of 154 rotations. The total rotations came out at 28 per cent higher than in 2022, with the highest number of rotations being performed for routes including London Heathrow, Rome Fiumicino, and Catania.

Italy remains the top destination when it comes to passenger loads with 249,730 passengers, followed by France, the United Kingdom and Germany. The airline’s most frequented airport remains London Heathrow, followed by Munich and Rome Fiumicino.

Mr Curmi noted that it gives him “great pleasure” that despite the addition of five new routes, Air Malta still achieved an average seat load factor of 88 per cent during the five months reported. The airline recorded a high average seat load of 92 per cent during August.

“14 out of 23 routes achieved a seat load factor of over 90 per cent. The highest seat load factors were achieved on the Lisbon, Amsterdam, and London Heathrow routes at 99 per cent, 96 per cent, and 95 per cent, respectively,” he continued.

“I attribute this successful performance to the hard work, dedication, and commitment of our people across the company,” Mr Curmi concluded.

Despite the positive results, Air Malta’s future remains uncertain, with it awaiting a verdict from the European Commission on whether Government’s request to inject state aid into the airline will be approved. Back in April, Mr Curmi had said that the airline is set to wind down operations by the end of the year, with a new flag-carrier set to take its place.

Article credits: https://whoswho.mt/en/air-malta-carried-970-636-passengers-between-april-and-august-2023

Malta International Airport expects 7.2 million passengers to pass through its gates this year, the company’s chief executive officer Alan Borg revealed last Wednesday.

If achieved, the figure would represent a 25 per cent increase in passenger numbers over 2022 and fall just shy of the 7.3 million record achieved in 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic.

The airport’s 7.2 million forecast is also higher than what the airport was initially expecting. Earlier this year, airport CEO Alan Borg said the airport expected to welcome 6.3 million passengers by the end of 2023.

Borg said that in the first half of 2023, over 3.4 million passengers travelled through the airport, showing an increase of 5.6% over 2019.

The airport CEO was speaking at a press conference called to announce MIA’s mid-year traffic results, forecasts for the rest of the year and updates on its investments.

He highlighted how airport traffic exceeded 700,000 passengers in April, surpassing 2019 levels by 8.4%.

The airport registered buoyant monthly seat load factors (SLF) that peaked in June at 86% and outperformed both 2022 and 2019 levels, he said.

Despite the airport’s strong results in the first half of the year, Borg noted that demand and appetite for travel could slowly calm down.

Quoting a European Travel Commission travel sentiment survey, he said that 20% of respondents said they were “unlikely to travel” over the next six months.

“While inflationary pressures and higher ticket prices have not yet dampened the demand for travel, such factors could have a dampening effect later on in the year,” he said.

“I predict that this strong demand will continue until the end of September, and then we will see traffic begin to slow down.”

Like previous years, the top markets remained Italy and the UK, followed by France, Germany and Poland. He said the airport welcomed 822,810 passengers from Italy between January and June this year and noted a slight drop in the second-highest market share- UK passengers. He linked this drop in UK passengers due to the drop in seat capacities provided by both airlines, Air Malta and Ryanair. He said both France and Poland markets have increased, rising by 51% and 55% respectively.

When it comes to airlines, similar to previous years, budget airline Ryanair dominated the market, retaining the highest market share (43%) followed by Air Malta (26%).

He noted that Ryanair’s market share has grown by 25% since 2019, while Air Malta’s has decreased by 4%.

Moving the topic to the airport’s investments in airfield infrastructure and terminal upgrades, Borg said the construction works on the €40 million Apron X project are underway, following the start of excavations at the end of 2022. He said that phase one of the project is set to be concluded by summer 2024, with the first three parking stands in operation. The airport’s second runway, RWY 23-05, will be getting a complete overhaul with an investment of €14 million, with works expected to begin in the fourth quarter of this year. Once this is completed, works on another runway, RWY 31-13, will begin, including resurfacing and lighting replacements. Works to expand the airport terminal will begin this year and are expected to continue until the end of 2024, he said. The terminal will also be benefitting from upgrades to its heating and ventilation systems.

Initially announced in 2018, the terminal expansion project was paused in 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic brought airline travel to a virtual standstill.

Article credits: https://timesofmalta.com/articles/view/airport-targets-72-million-passengers-end-year.1047289

From the 27th of March, Air Malta will offer two direct flights per week between Nice Côte d’Azur and Malta Luqa airport. Departures from Nice are scheduled for Monday and Friday.

Summer has finally arrived with Air Malta launching operation of its significantly expanded Summer 2022 flying program. The seven-month schedule, which runs from 27th March till 29th October, will see the airline operate 125 weekly return direct services to 18 key European Airports, across 10 different countries.

After an absence of over a year, Air Malta will be returning with a daily service to London Gatwick and with a three times a week service to Madrid. London Heathrow will be the most served route with 15 weekly scheduled flights, followed by Munich (12), Rome (10), and Paris with nine weekly frequencies on Orly and seven weekly frequencies to/from Charles De Gaulle airport. Amsterdam, whilst operating a daily service, will see this increasing to eight services per week during July – October.

This Summer Air Malta will be operating direct flights to Amsterdam, Berlin, Brussels, Catania, Dusseldorf, Geneva, Paris Charles De Gaulle, Paris Orly, Rome Fiumicino, London Gatwick, London Heathrow, Madrid, Milan Linate, Munich, Lyon, Prague, Vienna, and Zurich.

Read the full article here: https://www.independent.com.mt/articles/2022-03-30/local-news/Air-Malta-launches-its-summer-2022-flight-schedule-reintroduces-flights-to-London-Gatwick-Madrid-6736241872

Malta International Airport (MIA) welcomed the first two flights from Zagreb and Parma, which will be operated on Tuesdays and Saturdays throughout winter by Lauda Europe and Malta Air respectively, both of which are part of Ryanair Holdings. While Italy is one of Malta International Airport’s most popular markets, connected by flights to 16 out of its 20 regions, the Zagreb route is the first direct link between Malta and Croatia.

The capital of Croatia is characterised by red-roofed buildings, narrow cobbled streets snaking through the old Upper Town, and grand architecture dating to the times of the Habsburgs dominating the busier Lower Town. While the city brims with charm and activity all year, as Christmas rolls around, Zagreb’s festive attire and renowned street markets heighten its appeal as a winter destination.

By venturing just outside the city, visitors can also enjoy a spot of adventure down one of Mount Medvednica’s five ski runs. Other interesting places which are easily reachable from Zagreb and ideal for a day trip include Plitvice Lakes, which turn into a winter wonderland after snowfall, the sleepy town of Rastoke, and Karlovac where one of Croatia’s top beers is brewed.

While Croatia’s go-to tipple is beer, with the country producing 90% of all beer sold locally, Parma is well known for Lambrusco wine, Parmesan and prosciutto, making it a top destination for artisanal food tours. The time spent sampling Parma’s satisfying delicacies can be balanced with sighteeing tours of the city’s stunning monuments, including the Romanesque Cathedral and the medieval baptistery, both of which boast splendid frescoes, Palazzo della Pilotta, and the wooden Teatro Farnese.

Visitors can discover more of the Emilia-Romagna region by travelling to Bologna and Modena, both of which are a train ride of just under an hour away from Parma. The area between these two cities is often dubbed ‘Motor Valley’ due to a concentration of manufacturers of luxury cars and motorbikes, the likes of Ferrari and Ducati. Travellers who are more impressed by the sounds of opera than the purrs of fast cars will be happy to know that Modena also gave birth to Luciano Pavarotti, where his house has been turned into a museum.

Article credits: https://whoswho.mt/en/malta-international-airport-announces-new-direct-routes-for-zagreb-croatia-parma-italy

Air Malta has re-launched its popular website airmalta.com, and upgraded its internet booking engine as part of wide-ranging initiatives to transform its digital ecosystem.

“With a fresh, clean, intuitive, modern design and navigation layout, the site is optimised for a better user experience with components of personalisation depending on customer preferences, such as country of residence and preferred language”, Malta’s national carrier said in an announcement on Monday.

The website and booking engine are now fully integrated with the airline’s customer relationship management platform giving Air Malta a 360-degree view of its online customers that will assist it in offering personalised offers and best fares depending on previous purchases and booking preferences.

The redesigned website offers customers an array of increased capabilities and services that include features to plan holidays, manage bookings, check-in online and buy ancillary items including inflight menu products and boutique items that will be delivered on board. The site also allows users to book car hire and hotel accommodation in Malta and throughout the airline’s network through its partners as well as holiday packages through ‘Air Malta Holidays’.

Commenting on this launch, Air Malta’s Executive Chairman David G Curmi said, “We are very excited to announce the launch of our newly designed website. After months of hard work and dedication, we are delighted to deliver a customer experience that is faster, more intuitive, easier to navigate, and more user-friendly. The website incorporates a refreshed new look and features which will enhance the overall experience whether accessed from desktop, mobile or any tablet device. This platform will now enable us to launch our first mobile app and a redesigned Loyalty Programme in the coming months.”

Air Malta’s Chief Commercial Officer Roy Kinnear added, “Online services have today become indispensable tools to showcase one’s products and services and facilitate sales. This project’s aim was simple: to offer an outstanding user experience when browsing and booking through our website. We wanted the site to be the best in class, with simple and clear navigation by personalising the user experience through appropriate content and offers.

“The website showcases the Maltese Islands through its ‘Discover’ section which is full of interesting articles and information about the Maltese Islands. This section also incorporates the digital edition of the airline’s monthly inflight magazine ‘Il-Bizzilla’ Mr Kinnear added.

Wayne Grixti, Air Malta’s Chief Technology Officer added, “Digitalisation and modernisation are strategically important for the Airline in its journey to become sustainable. Our main goal is to leverage technology to provide the Airline with a set of tools required to ultimately serve our Customers in a digitally secure environment and make their online experience unique. This digital ecosystem initiative is a proof that Air Malta’s mindset is Customer First”.

airmalta.com attracts around five million visitors every year, the national carrier revealed. The website is available in seven languages (Maltese, English, German, Italian, French, Russian, and Dutch).

The application of new technologies will facilitate future upgrades including a unified check-in experience, integration of the loyalty programme, online shop for ancillary products, a B2B portal and a mobile app.

Article credits: https://whoswho.mt/en/air-malta-launches-new-website-and-booking-engine