Airstrip in Gozo

There is no doubt that an airstrip is needed in Gozo. The travel needs of the Gozitan people must be attended to. The airstrip will also generate a spectrum of economic activity that would give the island the status it so deserves.

Regardless of what has been said, an airstrip does not disrupt the environment. The open space it creates makes up for the land severity, land which property developers would otherwise take up.

Constructing the strip at an appropriate distance from villages would minimise noise pollution. A single 800 m x 22 m landing strip, laid in a roughly east-west direction, located about 200 m to the south of the existing helicopter landing pads, is all that is required. This would handle an array of STOL aircrafts capable of carrying around 40 passengers. I recently had the opportunity to travel on a Dash 8 - 400 and was impressed by its STOL performance.

Without doubt, Gozitans require their "freedom of movement" and cannot be condemned to their main problem of double insularity forever. For example, to fly to Catania, Sicily (a mere 160 km away) Gozitans would need to consume approximately six hours when a commuter plane flying out of Gozo could make the trip in less than one hour, with all the comforts of a direct flight.

Furthermore, one must not forget that Catania Fontanrossa is being developed into a major international gateway, offering connections to towns and cities that are not served by Air Malta. Citizens of such cities may be lured to Gozo if the Gozo-Catania direct link were to be established.

Gozitans need not fly out from MIA but can use Fontanarossa as a hub to reach major destinations. Comfort and time are now no longer considered luxuries but a requirement and the saving on both would be considerable.

On mainland Europe alone, there are over 300,000 private pilots continually flying to new destinations. A small airstrip in Gozo would give the island the possibility to exploit this valuable and lucrative niche market. Additionally, an airstrip gives northern Europeans the possibility to visit Gozo. The spin-off effect could generate much needed cash to the island's tourism-based economy.

Apart from transporting people, Gozitan products could also be airlifted quickly and more cheaply to foreign consumer markets. Micro industries in Gozo could become feasible after cutting the relatively high inter-island transport costs.

Commuter planes operating on a regional hub concept to and from Gozo can bring tourists from Mediterranean towns, cities or islands (eg Corfu, Crete) and allow Gozo to pick its share in this profitable market. Ultimately jobs will be created.

We must also take into consideration the possibility of an emergency, God forbid, a cataclysm of national proportions occurring. An airstrip in this case may become very handy to deliver supplies and extract the injured.

The terminal building is already there and in its present form can easily handle 150 passengers per hour with short, 10-minute check-in throughput. A small watchtower can be added on the roof of the fire station building and could function as a basic control tower.

This would mean the regeneration of an area equivalent to about seven football pitches with very little negative visual impact on the landscape - certainly much less than the ugly apartment blocks that seem to be sprouting up everywhere in Gozo.

The role of the authorities should be strictly limited to the development of the airstrip and the regulation regarding its democratic use by various operators. It would be another serious mistake if authorities were to give exclusivity to one operator - apart from the fact that this would probably be against the spirit of EU competition rules. The authorities should ensure a level playing field for all operators or users and use their resources not to hinder the project but to make it happen.

Over the years, we read with dismay, articles and reports on the development of an airstrip in Gozo, articles that may have not been scientifically researched and hence the data may have been inaccurate. It is also suspected that the so-called "experts" appointed by the authorities are no experts at all and are probably contributing further to confusion instead of proposing effective solutions. With an election looming, time is running out and if the airstrip is not built in the coming months then it probably will never materialise.

Dr Gatt and Mr Abela are president and member, respectively, of AOPA (Malta).