Air Malta yesterday announced its second winter sale, offering one-way tickets to 30 destinations at Lm20, excluding taxes and charges.

The offer, announced during the launch of the airline's winter operations, comes right at the heels of Spread Your Arms And Fly, through which the airline offered flights to 33 destinations for Lm15 each way, excluding taxes and charges. A staggering 28,000 return tickets were sold, the vast majority of which - 24,000 - to incoming tourists.

The new sale - Spread Your Arms And Fly Too - will be marketed "aggressively" in the United Kingdom, France and Germany, Air Malta's chief officer for commercial and strategic planning, Brock Friesen, said.

Mr Friesen explained that many people take more than one holiday a year, adding that Malta was well positioned to take advantage from the "other holidays" market. He said getting a small share from that market would not only mean that Air Malta will fill up its planes, but also that hotels will fill up their rooms.

This winter, he continued, the airline took a "little risk" and increased the seats on the market by 31,000 over last winter by increasing the schedule's efficacy. This winter Air Malta will be flying 130 flights a week to 35 destinations.

"I think we can fill those seats," he said, adding that the airline was looking forward to "quite a good winter", which in the industry meant breaking even since the summer months were the money earners.

Air Malta's general manager for marketing and product, Brian Bartolo, said this season the airline has increased flights to Amsterdam, Paris, Birmingham, Newcastle, Bristol, Glasgow and Munich. It also increased a weekly flight to London Gatwick and will continue its flight to Budapest throughout winter. "Malta can fill the gap for a leisure destination in the Mediterranean for the Eastern European market," he said.

In the coming season the airline will receive its last two new Airbus A320 aircraft, bringing the average age of the fleet down to 2.5 years, one of the youngest in the world.

Through its 54-page colour Flyaway Tours brochure the airline has reintroduced long-haul packages to Sydney or Melbourne with partner airline Qantas and to China with hotel packages in Beijing and Shanghai.

The company has also enhanced its football packages, allowing fans to attend matches of eight English and Italian teams. Trips to two golf resorts - one in Catania and another in Tunisia - have also been included, together with skiing resorts in Bulgaria, Italy and Sicily.