Ryanair has urged the government to give top priority to a proposal by the low-cost airline that would pave the way for the introduction of some 10 new routes to Malta.

Though no formal presentation has been made, the government is "fully aware" of Ryanair's requests, Bridget Dowling, the airline's sales and marketing manager for Southern Europe, told The Times.

Ryanair would not, however, divulge details of the routes it wishes to service other than the existing three routes to Malta (Pisa, Luton and Dublin).

Ms Dowling would only say that Ryanair's proposal calls for lower prices in return for higher volumes. The Irish airline would also prefer to boost the number of destinations rather than increase the frequencies on existing routes.

"The government needs to decide as soon as possible if we are to launch more Ryanair routes by next autumn... At the moment, there are a lot of other airports seeking our service," she said.

The topical question of whether Malta's tourism sector needed more low-cost airlines was discussed during a conference at the Radisson Golden Sands yesterday afternoon.

Malta International Airport has offered to give up to 50 per cent discount on its passenger service fees and landing charges on flights from airports in four countries - Spain, Poland, Norway and Sweden. The government will also provide market support. However, the offer is clearly not enticing enough for the world's largest budget airline.

When contacted, Tourism Minister Francis Zammit Dimech said Ryanair's request includes servicing airports in the UK, Germany and Italy.

He said ministry, Malta Tourism Authority and Ryanair officials are expected to have talks next month about the possibility of expanding further routes. While saying the provision of discounted rates to other UK destinations was highly unlikely, Dr Zammit Dimech added:

"Ryanair is free to start operating from Fiumicino (Rome) and Heathrow as of this evening if it so wishes, but it has to abide by the normal terms: Don't come ask me for money. If we are going to be offering subsidies then we should at least have the right to choose the under-served destinations."

In any case, he said, the government was evaluating the full impact of low-cost travel on different sectors, from national airlines to tour operators.

At the conference, Ms Dowling gave an overview of Ryanair's success in the five months it has been operating to Malta.

Ryanair would be flying 200,000 passengers to Malta this year and the airline's passengers will be ploughing some €30 million into the local economy, generating about 200 jobs, she said.

Figures provided by Ms Dowling showed that the vast majority of passengers using Ryanair's flights to Malta were foreigners - 80 per cent on the Dublin flights, 85 per cent on Luton, and 69 per cent on the Pisa route.

Ryanair's local representative, Philip Lingard, emphasised the "hefty" rates charged by MIA, which, he claimed, were about three times as expensive as those in other European airports.

Gina Giani, Pisa Airport's commercial and marketing director, spoke of the Italian airport's achievements over the past 10 years, thanks especially to the provision of budget airlines, in particular Ryanair.

In 1997, just four airlines were serving Pisa, carrying about one million passengers. This year, the Tuscan airport serves 52 destinations and is expected to handle something like 3.6 million passengers. Over the last decade, passenger growth in Italy reached 37 per cent; in Pisa it has soared to 119 per cent.

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