Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi yesterday hinted he was not satisfied with the pace of changes implemented at the national airline, particularly over the last three years.

Dr Gonzi said while the government was determined to put Air Malta on a sound financial footing and was having talks with the EU on this issue, he expected the ongoing restructuring programme to be more aggressive.

“The restructuring programme at Air Malta is not something new because it has been going on for six years,” he said when answering questions by Maltese journalists at the end of an EU summit in Brussels.

“I think it should have been more aggressive during the past three years, particularly as the company was being severely affected by the high price of fuel,” he remarked.

The company registered massive losses over the past years despite the ongoing restructuring programme, which involved freezing wages of some employee categories. For the last financial year, reported in January, Air Malta declared a loss of €31 million.

Losses are expected to be even bigger this year as The Sunday Times reported the airline even registered losses in the peak summer season.

Earlier this year, former Maltacom boss Sonny Portelli succeeded economist Lawrence Zammit as Air Malta chairman.

Asked whether the government was seeking to cut the company’s workforce in the next phase of the restructuring programme, Dr Gonzi refused to go into detail at this stage. “We are determined to take bold decisions and we hope we find the cooperation of all those involved, particularly the unions,” Dr Gonzi said.

The Sunday Times reported the government was seeking authorisation from Brussels to inject €100 million of fresh capital into the airline. This will only be possible if it is tied to a detailed restructuring plan.