Updated 8.20am on Monday

An Air Malta flight from Palermo left at 5am - almost 14 hours after its scheduled departure.

Sources said that the passengers were told to make their own arrangements for hotels and then would be compensated.

The passengers were asked to disembark after 30 minutes on board due to a fuel leak.

The flight was originally due to leave at 3.25pm and as the hours ticked past, many passengers complained that they were not being given any information about when it would eventually take off.

Some passengers were insisted they wanted to use a different airline.

They were later told Air Malta was getting a different aircraft and the flight would be leaving at 8pm. But just before 7pm, Air Malta staff told the passengers the flight would be leaving at 2.30am.

In a statement later, Air Malta said the flight was delayed after the aircraft developed a fuel spillage while on the ground. As was normal procedure, it said, fire tenders were deployed to ensure the maximum safety of passengers.

"The airline is making arrangements to send a relief aircraft to bring the passengers to Malta."

It said that other flights might be slightly delayed as a result.

Last month, the airline had to replace a 30-year-old leased aircraft that was at the centre of repeated delays and passenger complaints.

On Sunday afternoon, the airline's flight from Paris was diverted to Fiumicino due to a medical emergency.