Hainan Airlines managers were in Malta recently to discuss the possibility of direct flights to China, according to the Chinese Ambassador to Malta.

Cai Jinbiao said he had been informed about the talks by the Maltese Ambassador in Beijing but declined to say whether the discussions were with the Maltese government or with Air Malta.

Hainan is the largest privately-owned air transport company and the fourth largest Chinese airline in terms of fleet size but its 500 domestic and international routes only reach a few European countries.

When asked whether Hainan could be interested in taking a stake in Air Malta, Mr Cai said he did not have any other details about the talks, other than that the fact that they were first looking at a charter operation and then scheduled flights.

There has been considerable speculation about whether a strategic partner would be found for the Maltese national air carrier, which, according to a restructuring agreement with the European Commission, has until next March to break even.

The information I got was that Malta would not be the onlydestination. If they can strike a deal, a plane can come from any city in China to Malta and then connect to other major cities in Europe- said Cai Jinbiao, China’s Ambassador to Malta

“The information I got was that Malta would not be the only destination. If they can strike a deal, a plane can come from any city in China to Malta and then connect to other major cities in Europe,” Mr Cai said.

Malta’s share in Chinese tourism is negligible, considering that the country broke through the 100 million barrier last year.

Tourism arrivals dropped to under 1,000 in 2012 from more than 6,000 in 2011, slowly climbing back up to 3,200 last year. However, the fact that it takes about two weeks for a Chinese national to get a visa to Malta is considered to be an obstacle to improving this.

Mr Cai was speaking during an interview with The Business Observer (see pages 10 and 11), which covered bilateral issues ranging from current investment to the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.

The possibility of a new air services agreement providing for flights between the two countries was part of the Memorandum of Understanding signed last July. The agreement was signed in Beijing following a meeting between Premier Li Keqiang and Prime Minister Joseph Muscat.

At the time, Dr Muscat had not revealed which province the government had in its sight.

Air Malta was also involved in the ongoing talks and Dr Muscat had not ruled out that the national airline would somehow be involved, though it did not have the aircraft to handle long-haul flights.