An MIA investigation into what caused its power generators to malfunction on Tuesday during the nationwide blackout has so far ruled out speculation that the generators were not properly maintained or out of diesel.

“We carried out a simulation of the exact same scenario within 48 hours, without any adjustments to the terminal generators, and the system worked without a hitch,” an MIA spokesman said.

MIA reiterated that following the nationwide blackout on Tuesday, it suspended its runway operations for 25 minutes during which no flight operations would have been disrupted. However, Air Traffic Control kept the runway closed for a further 1 hour and 45 minutes citing safety precautions.

It said it would work to ensure, within the shortest time possible, that it could guarantee continuity in similar occurrences.

“Once again we apologise to all our stakeholders and passengers for the inconvenience caused,” MIA said.

The MIA's statement a few moments after the pilots' association called on MIA to cover the losses suffered by airlines as a result of the closure of the runway closure which led to the diversion of four flights.

This, Alpa said, was unacceptable as an international airport should have the appropriate working infrastructure to ensure a continuous service, irrespective of the power supply from the national generation plants.

Alpa noted MIA's "pledge to avoid a repeat of the power generators problems", but said it did not agree with MIA's justification that apron and runway operations were suspended for "not more than 25 minutes".

“The backup systems should have ensured that the airport operations remained unaffected throughout the entire blackout period. Furthermore, operations were halted for much longer than the stated 25 minutes, as evidenced by the extensive delays and diversions.”

Alpa said that its first and foremost priority remained safety, and it fully understand Malta Air Traffic Services’ reluctance to resume airport operations without MIA ensuring the provision of reliable technical services, including reliable runway lighting.

It urged MIA to immediately come up to terms with its priorities, and rather than focus on boasting about passenger numbers and opening further retail outlets, invest into ensuring that the necessary equipment and procedures were in place, so as to avoid a repeat the fiasco.

Alpa said it acknowledged the huge losses incurred by airlines, especially Air Malta, and called on MIA to cover these losses.

“Clearly, MIA failed to honour their obligations, in that they failed to provide the required level of service to ensure the continuous smooth operation of the airport during the power outage,” Alpa said.

MIA thanked the pilots’ union for its interest but said that if any discussions were to take place on redress, these would be held between the airport and the airlines affected.

 

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