Air Malta to reduce flight frequency but will not cancel planned routes

Air Malta vowed not to cancel any of the 16 routes planned for the winter, but said it will consolidate its flight schedule for January and February by reducing frequencies on certain routes.

The airline said this decision was necessary due to a dramatic downturn in demand over recent weeks.

“We are taking such decisions to match customer demand and avoid flying near-empty aircraft,” Executive Chairman David Curmi said.

Assessments on the airline’s flight schedule will continue until demand returns to healthy levels in order to protect the company’s liquidity and cash performance.

“Given the unprecedented times we are living in and the challenges that Air Malta is facing, we are continuously optimising our network for profitability and liquidity, and we plan to continue to do so without compromises,” Curmi continued.

He added that Air Malta will remain committed to providing a year-round link to mainland Europe for travel and tourism but also for the transfer of urgent medical cargo, mail, and other import and export freight.

Roy Kinnear, Air Malta’s Chief Commercial Officer, explained that the surge of the Omicron variant and the introduction of lockdowns and travel restrictions across Europe contributed to a slowdown in new bookings and cancellations for existing ones.

“These fluctuating trends have been typical last year with markets opening and closing depending on threat levels. The combination of the current slowdown in bookings and with January and February being naturally lower demand months, has unfortunately driven an increased level of frequency consolidation compared to previously anticipated, but commercially necessary to do so,” he said.