Five Air Malta flights have been delayed - one of them for 12 hours - because of a technical fault involving an aircraft.

An Air Malta spokesman said the airline decided to ground one of its Airbus aircraft after an airframe problem was noted when it flew in last night.

The affected flights are to Paris, Lourdes, Rome, Athens and Budapest. The delays are between 30 minutes and two hours, except for the flight to Budapest (and return) which has been delayed by just over 12 hours. The Budapest flight was due to have taken off from Malta today at 11am.

The spokesman said the airline regretted and apologised for the problem, but the safety of passengers came first.

Passengers were urged to follow the airline's website for developments.

The spokesman said the passengers were being given refreshments, and lunch and dinner in the case of the Budapest flight. Passengers to Budapest were offered hotel accommodation.