WATCH: Finance Minister Laughs Off Adrian Delia’s Call To Scrap Air Malta’s In-Flight Magazine
PN MP Adrian Delia’s proposal for Air Malta to cut costs by scrapping its in-flight magazine Il-Bizzilla hasn’t exactly been met positively by the minister responsible for the national airline.
“If I had to base my decisions on trying to save Air Malta by trying to cut down on Il-Bizzilla… well, if that’s the best that the Opposition can come up with, I will leave it up to the workers to decide who is the best person to decide how the airline will survive in the coming years,” Caruana said when questioned by Lovin Malta.
Delia recently said that scrapping Il-Bizzilla, which is produced monthly in collaboration with marketing agency TBWA\ANG, will kill two birds with one stone – cut costs at the airline and reduce the spread of COVID-19.
@lovinmaltaofficial Thoughts on Finance Minister Clyde Caruana’s replies on Air Malta? 🧐 #fyp #fypmalta #malta #lovinmalta #interview #minister #airmalta #finance ♬ original sound – Lovin Malta
“During the pandemic, restaurants have been forced to remove their paper menus and offer digital alternatives… less money, less virus,” he said.
Clyde Caruana recently warned that Air Malta will halve its workforce in an attempt to survive, with hundreds of cargo handlers, cabin crew and administrative officials losing their jobs.
All workers have been guaranteed new jobs at unnamed government departments but business lobbyists have called for them to be directed to the private sector.
Air Malta’s executive chairperson David Curmi has warned that the national airline is losing money on all of its routes and that it is essential for the airline to reposition itself as a European network.
This would mean it will fly from and to other European airports, instead of just carrying out flights to and from the Malta International Airport.
Caruana has said that Air Malta must make sure every destination is profitable before the airline can even start exploring new routes, including destinations like New York, Accra and Mumbai that were touted by former Tourism Minister Konrad Mizzi.
“David Curmi and I are both a bit unsure about expanding beyond Europe for the simple reason the even a flight from here to Frankfurt or Rome runs at a loss, let alone to such destinations. First we must make sure that even more straightforward flights are run in a profitable manner.”
Do you think Air Malta has a future?
READ NEXT: Stuck In A ‘Banal’ Loophole, Maltese Wrestling Academy Head Calls Out Authorities Over Permit Struggles
