Fly Hermes, which cancelled all flights to and from Malta just a month after it started operations, has been grounded after its licence was suspended. The decision was taken by the Maltese civil aviation authorities as the Sicilian-owned company is registered in Malta.
The government admitted yesterday the issue was damaging the island’s reputation, and Tourism Minister Zammit Lewis said the suspension of the licence was meant “to contain the damage” already done.
The airline was granted a licence by the civil aviation directorate at Transport Malta last December to start operating daily flights on a multi-city route including Malta, Comiso (Sicily), Torino and Palermo.
The new carrier, which owns just one aircraft, soon started encountering difficulties, with passengers complaining of massive delays and flight cancellations.The Italian authorities launched an investigation.
When contacted, a Transport Malta spokesman said the civil aviation directorate had not received any complaints. He said that due diligence on the state of the company had taken place before an air operator certificate (licence) was issued.