Malta International Airport should not have been closed during last month’s blackout as one of its runways remained fully functional throughout, an internal inquiry has revealed.

The report, details of which were given to Times of Malta, was drawn up after four flights were diverted and others remained grounded when the airport was closed by Malta Air Traffic Services for nearly two hours on August 12.

Air traffic head Carmel Vassallo had said the decision to close the airport was taken because the lights surrounding the main runway were not working at the optimal levels.

However, the recently concluded inquiry found while the main runway may have experienced minor problems, the secondary one was fully functional throughout the blackout.

The main runway experienced a 21-minute power outage at 9.31pm but it had been restored to working order more than an hour before the air traffic services ordered its closure. (See timeline on page 6).

Airport CEO Markus Klaushofer said the airport’s operational team had not been informed of the decision to shut down operations and he planned to have talks with senior air traffic services officials to ensure it would not be repeated.

“There is going to be a change in the way the shots are called. As a minimum we expect to be consulted when these decisions are being taken. I want to hear the views in favour and against, before any decision is taken,” he said.

Asked for a reaction, Brigadier Vassallo yesterday stood by his decision to shut the airport.

“I was given advice by technical experts who raised concerns over the standard of the lighting of the airstrips. At the end of the day, a flight only leaves after being given clearance by the controller. The responsibility is mine,” he said, adding that he too wanted to hold talks with the airport to work better in the future.

Asked why the airport was closed even though the secondary runway was up and running, Brig. Vassallo said that at the time he also had concerns over the lighting quality of the auxiliary airstrip.

He explained that he had noticed problems with parts of the lighting on the secondary runway, which had further informed his decision.

Last month, Times of Malta reported that a pilot had noticed flickering of the main runway landing lights during the blackout.

The inquiry, however, revealed that the brief flickers were merely the result of Enemalta’s attempts to return power to the southern parts of the island and could not have been avoided.

The report also clarifies the sequence of events which led to the temporary closure.

Graphic: Design Studio

According to a summary of events by MIA, the airport’s generators kicked in and operations were uninterrupted when the blackout occurred at 7.51pm. Thirteen flights took off and landed until the airport’s power supply experienced a 20-minute hitch at 9.31pm.

The brief blackout was caused when one of the airport’s generating plants, which powers the main runway, had a switch gear fault and could not transmit the energy it was producing.

At this point, the airport’s technicians diverted the power supplied for the terminal building to light the runway and operations were restored. An hour and 20 minutes later, at 11.10pm, the air traffic controller decided to shut down the airport. Nine flights took off and landed before the runway was closed.

Mr Klaushofer said although the airport was fully operational when it was closed, he would take action to improve its back-up supplies. MIA’s system has more than the one back-up required by international regulations, but he would implement a significant investment early next year to improve the main runway supplies.