Tuesday, February 26, 2019
Tunisair flight bound to Istanbul diverts to Malta
Labels:
A320,
diversion,
Istanbul-Ataturk,
Malta IAP,
medical emergency,
Tunis,
Tunisair
Sunday, February 24, 2019
Helicopter Services Malta EC35 damaged at Malta IAP
A Helicopter Services Malta Ltd. Eurocopter EC-135 P2 (9H-VIP) was damaged at Malta Int'l Airport after the partial tent the helicopter was under, next to Malta IAP's control tower, collapsed on the helicopter due to very strong winds that was hitting the island. The extent of the damage to the helicopter is unknown but the main rotors where surely effected. (24-Feb-2019)
Saturday, February 23, 2019
Malta IAP runway temporarily closed after drone is sighted
One of the runways at Malta International Airport (RWY 31) was
temporarily closed down on Saturday afternoon after a pilot noticed a drone
being flown in its vicinity. According to the police, air
traffic controllers decided to close the runway when the drone was spotted
around 12.25pm.
Police and Armed Forces of
Malta officials were seen in the area trying to identify the person operating
the drone. An AFM helicopter was also deployed to the scene but there was no
sight of the drone. Services were resumed shortly
afterwards and no flights were delayed or cancelled because of the incident. (Source: timesofmalta.com, 23-Feb-2019)
Thursday, February 21, 2019
Malta International Airport makes €30.3 million profit in 2018
Malta Int'l Airport saw its profit rise to €30.3
million last year from €24.2 million the year before. In a statement, the company
said performance improved in both its aviation and non-aviation activities. Group revenue for the year
which ended on Dec. 31st was €92,191,719 up from €82,369,154 in 2017.
Aviation revenue grew by 11.1%
to €65.5 million, largely attributable to an increase of 13.2% in traffic,
which reached a new all-time high of 6,808,177 passenger movements in 2018. Revenue from non-aviation
activities increased by 14.1% to reach €26.7 million. The company's VIP products
registered an increase of 36.3% over 2017.
The board of directors
recommended the payment of a final net dividend of €0.090 per share (gross
€0.138) on all shares settled as at close of business on Monday, April 15th, 2019. (Source: timesofmalta.com, 21-Feb-2019)
Monday, February 18, 2019
Maleth-Aero to take up more ERJ-145s
Maleth-Aero, based in Malta, is to introduce another four Embraer 145 aircraft under
management in response to market demand. The aircraft are to be offered out for
both Charter and ACMI work based in Europe.
"We are very pleased
to be expanding this product further and will take one aircraft per month
starting in April 2019. Our initial unit has proven to be very popular with the
market operating out of Spain. The additional aircraft will be used to expand
our existing capability and open up new opportunities", said M. O’Brien, Chief
Executive Officer of Maleth-Aero. (Source: aviation24.be, 18-Feb-2019)
Friday, February 15, 2019
Jet Aviation adds second BBJ1 to its Maltese AOC
Jet
Aviation announced today that it has added a second Boeing B737 (BBJ1) to its
fleet of managed aircraft in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The BBJ1 is based in
Western Europe and is available for charter service. Managed by Jet Aviation's
aircraft management and charter business in Malta, the Boeing BBJ1 has been added to
the company's Maltese air operator's certificate.
The long-range BBJ1 has a range of up to 9,260-km and offers
space for up to 11 passengers to fly in comfort. Furnished with a luxurious VIP
interior, the aircraft features a master bedroom and ensuite bathroom with
shower, separate guest and crew lavatories, and two side-facing divans that
convert to single berths. The aircraft's elegant cabin interior is
characterized by clean lines, neutral tones and leather seating, and boasts all
the essential passenger amenities, including a high-end entertainment system. (Source: jetaviation.com, 14-Feb-2019)
Thursday, February 14, 2019
Air Malta outlines five-year fleet plan, including A321XLR
Air
Malta hopes to induct more than a dozen Airbus A320-family neos over the next
five years, chief executive C. Chetcuti has revealed, with the
yet-to-be-developed A321XLR among the airline's targets.
The
flag-carrier took delivery of its first A320neo last year and is expecting
another two leased units this summer.
Speaking at the company's headquarters in Malta, Chetcuti said up to 11 additional
neos will be sought as Air Malta expands its fleet and transitions from
A320ceos to the latest, re-engined models. Operating leases and direct
purchases will both be considered for the renewal, and the airline's existing
A319 – the smallest plane in its fleet – will be the first to be retired in
October.
"We
are studying if we can go up to 14 aircraft over the next five years," the
chief executive said. "All the existing ones will be replaced with brand new
neos. So, over five years, we will have a brand new fleet."
Echoing
earlier remarks by Tourism Minister K. Mizzi, Chetcuti
confirmed that Air Malta is evaluating route launches to the Indian
subcontinent and the U.S. east coast – markets that would require modified
variants of the stretched A321neo.
"We
are studying the potential to go to the Indian subcontinent," he said. "To get there, though, we need the LR because the current neo does not
reach the Indian subcontinent. To go to the East Coast of America we need the
XLR.
"It’s
going to be an amazing aircraft, and we are studying the option to actually
acquire an XLR as part of our fleet."
Airbus
has not yet committed to developing the A321XLR, but it is believed to have
pitched the idea to prospective customers in a bid to gauge interest. (Source: forbes.com, 13-Feb-2019)
Labels:
A320neo,
A321LR,
A321XLR,
Air Malta plc,
fleet renewal,
future strategy
Wednesday, February 13, 2019
Ryanair's Leeds-Malta flight diverts to Palermo
A Ryanair Boeing 737-800 (EI-DWK), performing flight FR-2448 from Leeds-Bradford (U.K.) to Malta IAP, had to divert to Palermo (Sicily, Italy) this morning due to a medical emergency on board. The flight then continued to Malta reaching destination with a delay of 90-mins. (Source: flightradar24.com, 13-Feb-2019)
Labels:
B738,
diversion,
incident,
Leeds/Bradford,
Malta IAP,
medical emergency,
Palermo,
Ryanair
Saturday, February 9, 2019
Medavia unveils plans for domestic Libyan airline
Libyan travellers should be able to fly with a new domestic airline next year thanks to Mediterranean Aviation Co. Ltd. (Medavia), a charter operator and aircraft maintenance firm based in the southern European island of Malta.
Provisionally named Medlib, or Medavia Libya, the new airline is in the process of applying for an Air Operator’s Certificate (AOC) from the Libyan Civil Aviation Authority.
"The overall idea is to offer more frequent, reliable services between the Libyan cities," chief executive R. Ettir said during an interview at the company's headquarters in Malta. "The services that are being offered at the moment are not really good and the Libyan travellers deserve much better."
Ettir expects the AOC to be granted in the second half of this year, paving the way for scheduled flights to begin in 2020 with three leased turboprops. He is evaluating the Bombardier Dash-8 Q400 and the ATR 72 for Medlib's fleet – both models that Medavia Technics, the company's technical arm, is certified to conduct maintenance work on.
Medlib plans to initially focus on domestic connectivity, with flights operating from Tripoli to all the main cities in Libya including Benghazi, Sebha, Misrata, Zintan, Labraq, Kufra, Ghat and Tobruk. Its fleet will be based in Mitiga IAP – the capital's main gateway since Tripoli IAP was destroyed by fighting in 2014 – though Ettir does not rule out stationing some aircraft in Benghazi.
"If we manage to succeed in the domestic market, I'm sure there will be a request to go for regional routes," Ettir said, identifying Malta, Djerba (Tunisia), and Alexandria and Luxor (Egypt) as possible targets. (Source: forbes.com, 8-Feb-2019)
Friday, February 8, 2019
M.I.A. plc releases traffic results for Jan-19
Having served 366,015 passengers in January, Malta Int'l Airport continued to register growth, albeit at a not unexpected slower pace, in the winter months.
Following several months of robust growth, January's modest 4.1% increase in passenger numbers was observed alongside a 9.9% increase in aircraft movements and a rise of 7.9% in seat capacity. Seat load factor for the month stood at 69%.
Within the top five markets, Spain registered a phenomenal increase of 87.2% and France grew by a healthy 12%. The performance of the Spanish and French markets indicates that the joint traffic diversification strategy of Malta IAP, the Ministry for Tourism and the Malta Tourism Authority is bearing the desired results, in that it has stimulated newer markets to gain momentum just as legacy markets are reaching maturity.
The Iberian Peninsula constitutes one such new market and, in fact, the Seville, Malaga and Barcelona routes, which were introduced by two different airlines in summer 2018, are all being operated during the winter months.
In January, Malta IAP’s traditional top driver of passenger traffic, the U.K. (-3.2%) was outperformed by the Italian market (-0.8%), by 604 passenger movements, and followed by the German market (-8.3%).
Outside the top five markets, traffic from Hungary was up a noteworthy 42.4%. This surge can be attributed to the extension of the Budapest route from summer 2018 into winter. (Source: maltairport.com, 7-Feb-2019)
Monday, February 4, 2019
Air Malta's Heathrow-Malta flight diverts to Geneva
An Air Malta Airbus A320-200 (9H-AEO), performing flight KM-101 from London-Heathrow (U.K.) to Malta IAP, had to divert to Geneva (Switzerland) this afternoon because of a medical emergency onboard. The flight then continued to Malta reaching the destination with a delay of nearly 1.5-hrs. (Source: flightradar24.com, 4-Feb-2019)
Labels:
9H-AEO,
Air Malta plc,
diversion,
Geneva,
incident,
KM-100,
London-Heathrow,
Malta IAP,
medical emergency
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