Air Malta’s top financial officer left the airline amid divergences between senior management members and Tourism Minister Konrad Mizzi over the airliner’s future, the Times of Malta is informed.
Air Malta sources said the departure of German Klaus Gossler, who previously also worked for British Airways, gave more credence to reports of serious misunderstandings between the management and “heavy-handed” orders from above.
Civil aviation industry sources said it was not yet known what exactly led Mr Gossler to leave, adding that one would have expected his three-year contract to be renewed, especially given the crucial time the airline was facing.
“It seems top management is getting very edgy when faced with the orders coming directly from the Tourism Ministry on how Air Malta should carry out its day-to-day operations. They are too heavy-handed and it seems the airline is being directly controlled by Konrad Mizzi,” the sources remarked.
Times of Malta was told that decisions were being communicated to the airline via Paul Sies, the chief commercial officer hired last year.
According to the sources, Mr Gossler was one of the top managers critical of what is going on, particularly with regard to well-planned restructuring and the opening of new routes without the backing of proper studies.
“The airline is just getting pain relief pills without getting cured. We are just postponing the problem,” the sources said.
When contacted, a spokesman for Dr Mizzi said Mr Gossler’s departure was part of a “change process” and a new CFO had been appointed. He did not say why Mr Gossler’s contract was not renewed.
The spokesman defined the information reaching Times of Malta as “fabrication”.
Since assuming political responsibility for Air Malta, Dr Mizzi changed many of the key decisions made by his predecessor, Edward Zammit Lewis.
Abandoning the unsuccessful strategy of trying to find a strategic partner by making Air Malta leaner, Dr Mizzi embarked on an expansionary programme by introducing new routes and increasing the fleet.
As part of a cost-cutting exercise, Air Malta discontinued the on-board meal service and assumed more the model of a low-cost carrier rather than a legacy airline.
It shed about 400 employees, hiving off ground handling on to a government company and selling its London slots to a newly-created government company in what observers considered to be a paper-to-paper transaction giving some more cash to the ailing airline.
Dr Mizzi said this strategy should help the airline to increase its revenue.
Times of Malta was told airline management officials expressed the decisions being made might have devastating consequences on the airline’s future.
According to the sources, the management did not favour leasing two new aircraft this year, also because some of the new routes might not be as successful as envisaged. Management would have preferred to add only one aircraft this year with a second in 2019.
There were also divergent opinions on some of the new routes. The decision to start flying to Tunis, Malaga and Kiev might not have been adequately studied, the sources said.
“We hope we are wrong but these new routes might become the airline’s death knell,” they warned.
Dr Mizzi is on record saying the airline had to return to the black by the end of last month.