A new helicopter service will provide tours of Malta and Gozo and may later offer transport between the two islands.
The first helicopter of a planned three is scheduled to land in Malta today, and the tours will be launched next week.
The operation is an investment by Eagle Associates (London) Ltd, which is represented in 53 countries. It has already set up its Malta Heli Tours office and booth at Malta International Airport, which will be offering sightseeing and tailor-made luxury packages. Four British pilots will do the job.
Managing director and CEO Philip Bayne hopes to move on to providing a helicopter service to Gozo once the tours are up and running, and Malta Heli Tours is paving the way for that. "The infrastructure is in place and we are ready to go!"
However, Mr Bayne stresses: "We are not in competition with Harbour Air (the seaplane company) or ferry services; we just want to complement them and offer the Maltese additional means."
But Mr Bayne's sights have been set farther and the Maltese sky is not the limit. The company is also looking to expand its helicopter services to Libya and Sicily.
"The idea is to take advantage of the fact that a helicopter can land almost anywhere," he said. In fact, its aircraft is also being fitted with floats to operate on the sea.
Future plans are far-reaching and include getting involved in a multitude of other related services - from emergency interventions and fire fighting to the chartering of jets and helicopters and taking aerial photography.
"We also have a strong aero-medical evacuation role. In the case of an accident, we could deploy a helicopter to transport the victim to hospital and we could intervene in the case of a shipping disaster, for example," he said.
The company is also interested in landing government contracts, for example to carry government officials overseas, and plans to have a jet in Malta.
A Maltese-registered company, Eagle Associates (Malta) Ltd, plans to recruit local staff as the operation expands, said Mr Bayne. "We want to be Maltese!"
Retired from the Royal Air Force, and having worked for the major US aviation companies, Mr Bayne has been working on the business for the last year.
He has a "love affair" with Malta and Gozo. "That is why I want to invest," he said, pointing out that it does not come cheap but refusing to disclose the amount due to the competition: "Any group in the UK would be interested to set up shop in Malta."
Eagle Associates has linked up with Heli Air, Robinson aircraft dealers in the UK, and is bringing over an R44, which can carry three passengers, as well as deploying a Bell 206 L3, which takes six. The Robinson R44 should be deployed within around 10 days and a third helicopter should be arriving shortly after.
Eagle Associates have already landed a contract with Saga Holidays - catering for tourists over 50 - and is looking for a convenient landing pad near the Coastline Hotel, which provides their accommodation.
The service is also being promoted on cruise liners, Mr Bayne said, adding that, ideally, the company would also have a helipad at the Viset Valletta Waterfront and could fly passengers to wine and dine in Gozo.
Eagle Associates is big on ferrying sports and entertainment celebrities and hopes to bring some over to Malta, Mr Bayne added.
The tours are designed in such a way that tourists can enjoy a recorded commentary, which eventually should be presented in four European languages. So far, there are three types of various lengths: the starting price is €125 for the 20-minute Platinum Tour, which could even include dinner and golf, with others going up to €165.