With Air Malta receiving “bad press” I feel it incumbent on myself to help set the record straight regarding the A Not-So Permanent Airline Membership letter of April 27. Once achieving 10,000 flown miles in a calendar year the holder of an Air Malta Flypass frequent flyer card becomes a permanent member for life. Any Flypass member who accrues 35,000 flown miles in a calendar year becomes a Diamond Member and I believe that this is the membership that the correspondent, Michael Duncan, has issues with.

Diamond membership is only retained if the traveller continues to accrue 35,000 flown miles every calendar year. Once the required mileage has been achieved Air Malta writes to the Flypass member and sends a personalised membership card and baggage labels, all of which have an expiry date clearly printed on them. Details on how to retain diamond membership for the following year accompany the membership card.

Mr Duncan is correct: you need to keep up your miles to keep your status or climb up the ladder. This is exactly the policy that Air Malta employs and the membership conditions are easily accessible on the Air Malta website. Therefore, if Mr Duncan fails to accrue 35,000 miles a year, he is downgraded from diamond level to permanent level on expiry of his diamond card.

And no, I do not work for Air Malta, I am a frequent traveller who appreciates the hard work and service offered by Air Malta and simply wants to see the airline receive the credit it is due and not to be blamed for something that is not its own doing.