Air Malta summer schedule launched

Air Malta launched its summer schedule yesterday - an integral part of the restructuring that is currently taking place in the company as it is taking major consideration of costs and revenue.

Air Malta's chief operating officer, Joe Cappello, told a news conference that the schedule included 45 destinations in Europe, North Africa and the Middle East and a number of firsts in the way the airline ran its operations.

Topping the list of this year's summer schedule - running from tomorrow to October 25 - is the new low-cost, no-frills Fare4U service between Malta and London Stansted.

This service will commence on Monday with flights on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, departing Malta at 9 p.m.

This flight is being sold for Lm23 one way excluding taxes, sold via the internet, on the phone and in the travel trade.

This service, at significantly lower prices than normally available on the market, should stimulate incoming tourism to Malta and give the Maltese an opportunity to visit the UK more often, Mr Cappello said.

He said that Stansted, the fastest growing major airport in Europe and the fourth busiest airport in the UK, catered for extended hours of operation and was the main hub of low-cost airlines. It had regular, rail and coach connections to and from central London.

Mr Cappello said Air Malta was not a low-cost airline and had no intention of becoming one. But it was seeing how it could provide a low-cost, low- fare service at night to utilise aircraft available.

Air Malta will be utilising the EU Third Package agreement to operate a direct scheduled flight service between Catania and London Gatwick as from May 2.

Mr Cappello said both the Fare4U and the Catania-Gatwick flights resulted from the findings of the Network Group that included a number of senior Air Malta officials.

The group's aim was to present recommendations for a schedule and charter network strategy that improved operating results and would fit the airline's strategic vision.

He said that Air Malta's 14 weekly flights to London Heathrow would operate throughout the whole season at standard timings, as would Air Malta's five weekly flights to Frankfurt. This season would also see the introduction of a weekly service to Cologne on Saturday.

Air Malta was also considering extending the Fare4U to the Cologne route next summer.

Mr Cappello said Air Malta was also expanding its service to Brussels to a daily operation in July and August. For the rest of the summer season, it would operate five flights a week. Emphasis was also being laid on standard timings for departures with mid-afternoon departures from Malta. The timings of flights to Zurich, Rome and Milan have also been standardised.

Air Malta yesterday also launched its summer Flyaway Tours Brochure. Preliminary statistics for the 12 months ending this month showed an increase of almost 24 per cent in the number of clients booking Flyaway packages, with the 10,000 client mark having now been reached.

Flyaway is presenting a number of interesting package holidays, including places where it did not go before, such as Slovakia and Mauritius.