Frequent fliers on Air Malta’s Italian routes have the option to block-buy flights at a pre-discounted rate.

With the airline’s new Take-off Bundle carnet product, it is possible to purchase six open return tickets to Catania, Rome or Milan in advance.

Specific routes using the open tickets can be booked up to 72 hours before departure and previously issued carnet tickets can be changed without paying any rebooking fees.

Carnet ticket holders can also choose their preferred seats and receive discounted excess baggage vouchers at the time of booking.

And if successful, the offer could be rolled out on other routes.

“Our frequent flyers have been requesting a product that would help them budget their travel expenses while offering them flexibility,” said Joe Galea, Air Malta’s deputy chief commercial officer.

“We have launched this product on our Italian routes but we intend to extend it on other destinations in the near future.”

Terms and conditions may apply.

Further information on the product is available at www.airmalta.com/information/business/the-carnet-product.

Hundred-minute sale for centenary

The national airline held a flash sale to mark 100 years of aviation in Malta last week – but it did not make things easy for customers.

Air Malta knocked 30 per cent off fares across its entire route network for a three-month period.

However, would-be travellers had to move fast: the offer was only on between 10am and 11.40am and 3pm and 4.40pm on Tuesday.

It was billed as the ‘100-minute sale’, and to make things even trickier, tickets could only be purchased from the airline’s sales office at Malta International Airport.

Staff took the opportunity of having more non-passenger visitors to the airport to hold information sessions explaining the airline’s operation, the importance of on-time performance and describing the customer journey from arrival to departure.