Malta Air

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Malta Air
Malta Air Logo.svg
Malta Air, 9H-VUF, Boeing 737-8-200 MAX.jpg
Malta Air 737-8200 operated for Ryanair
IATA ICAO Call sign
MWMAYBLUE MED
Founded9 June 2019;6 years ago (2019-06-09)
AOC # MT-57
Operating bases
Fleet size179
Parent company Ryanair Holdings
Headquarters Pietà, Malta
Key peopleDavid O’Brien (CEO) [1]

Malta Air is a low-cost airline that operates from Malta. [2] It originally started as a joint venture between Ryanair and the Government of Malta, [3] however, Ryanair bought out the whole company in 2025. [4]

Contents

The new airline initially operated six former Ryanair aircraft. [5] Ryanair planned to assign 66 routes it operates to and from Malta to this new airline and there were plans to grow the network beyond that. [6] However, these plans were revised in May 2020, when redundancy for one third of the full complement of 179 pilots and cabin crew was announced in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. [7]

History

On 9 June 2019, Ryanair announced together with the Government of Malta that they were to set up a subsidiary airline called Malta Air which was to consist of an initial fleet of 6 aircraft and operate the existing 61 flights operated by Ryanair from the island. The fleet was to be registered in Malta while a new repair and maintenance hangar was also to be set up. [8] [9] Ryanair was to transfer all its existing Maltese operations to the new airline with its fleet increasing from 6 to 10 Boeing 737-800 aircraft and all in Malta Air colours by mid 2020. [10]

News aggregator Corporate Dispatch reported the first sighting of a Ryanair aircraft displaying an "operated by Malta Air" sticker just outside its front passenger door on 20 June 2019 at Stansted Airport. [11] By late September 2019, further reports of Malta Air branding on Ryanair flights were being reported, including safety cards on the back of all passenger seats, as well as flight attendant and cockpit announcements,[ citation needed ] even though no further official notice of this was circulated to the general public.

When faced with the COVID-19 crisis in May 2020, Malta Air announced substantial redundancies for its pilots and cabin crew, after first proposing a 10% salary cut. [12] Around 20 pilots and 40 cabin crew from the full complement of 179 pilots and cabin crew had their employment terminated from 30 June 2020. [7]

In July 2021, Malta Air received its first Boeing 737 MAX 200. The aircraft, registered as 9H-VUE, was the first in its fleet to be painted in the Malta Air livery.[ citation needed ] It was also the first aircraft to be delivered directly to Malta Air from the manufacturer, as its previous Boeing 737-800 aircraft had been transferred from its parent, Ryanair. Five further examples of the type were delivered in Malta Air livery between July and August 2021, though the remainder of its MAX 200 fleet wears Ryanair livery in order to facilitate transfers between different group AOCs.

In June 2024, five years after the airline's inception, Ryanair took over the Maltese government's golden share in Malta Air [13] for the pre-agreed sum of €25,000. [14] The buyout for finalised in May 2025. [4]

Destinations

The company has planned to operate 66 routes from its Malta International Airport base starting in 2020. [15] In addition to all the former Ryanair routes to and from Malta, Malta Air has added these destinations: Paphos in Cyprus; Brindisi, Trapani, and Trieste in Italy; Niš in Serbia; and Santiago de Compostela in Spain. [16] Malta Air will also operate a service between Dublin and Vienna from 1 April 2020. [17] Malta Air now operates the majority of Ryanair routes from/to Milan Bergamo Airport.[ citation needed ] Malta Air now operates Ryanair's bases in Italy, Germany, Romania, France and partially Sweden on behalf of Ryanair, including Bologna (BLQ).

Fleet

Malta Air Boeing 737 MAX 200 9H-VUC Malta Air Boeing 737-8-200 MAX.jpg
Malta Air Boeing 737 MAX 200

As of August 2025, Malta Air operates the following aircraft: [18]

Malta Air fleet
AircraftIn serviceOrdersPassengersNotes
Boeing 737-800 136189Transferred from Ryanair and Buzz.
Boeing 737 MAX 200 431978 were originally due for delivery to Ryanair.
Total179

References

  1. "Ryanair | Executive Officers". investor.ryanair.com. Retrieved 8 February 2024.
  2. Martin, Ivan (11 June 2019). "Ryanair subsidiary Malta Air and Air Malta 'can live happily ever after'". Times of Malta. Retrieved 11 June 2019.
  3. Galea, Albert (11 June 2019). "Malta Air will fly to 60 destinations but will not clash with Air Malta, PM says". www.independent.com.mt. Retrieved 11 June 2019.
  4. 1 2 Borg, Neville (29 May 2025). "Ryanair buys out government's stake in Malta Air". Times of Malta. Retrieved 16 August 2025.
  5. Martin, Ivan (9 June 2019). "Ryanair to set up a new airline based in Malta". Times of Malta. Retrieved 11 June 2019.
  6. Hudson, David (11 June 2019). "Malta Air officially launched, as Ryanair promises $1 billion investment". MaltaToday.com.mt. Retrieved 11 June 2019.
  7. 1 2 Vella, Matthew (30 May 2020). "Ryanair subsidiary Malta Air starts COVID-19 redundancies of pilots, cabin crew". MaltaToday.com.mt. Retrieved 1 June 2020.
  8. "Ryanair to set up a new airline based in Malta". Times of Malta. 9 June 2019.
  9. "Ryanair to establish an airline in Malta". AVIATOR. 9 June 2019.
  10. "Ryanair Snaps Up Malta Air". Airliner World. August 2019: 11.
  11. Corporate Dispatch (20 June 2019). "PhotoStory – Ryanair aircraft operated by Malta Air spotted in Stansted airport". Corporate Dispatch. Retrieved 23 November 2019.[ permanent dead link ]
  12. Caurana, Claire (30 May 2020). "Malta Air makes pilots, cabin crew redundant". Times of Malta. Retrieved 1 June 2020.
  13. Kelly, Cianan (23 April 2025). "Maltese government exits Malta Air, sells 'golden share' to Ryanair". Fresh Aviation. Retrieved 8 June 2025.
  14. Borg, Neville (30 May 2025). "Government sold Malta Air stake for €25,000 under 2019 deal". Times of Malta. Retrieved 8 June 2025.
  15. "Malta Air launches six new routes for next summer". MaltaToday.com.mt. Retrieved 12 October 2019.
  16. "Malta Air launches six new routes from Malta". Times of Malta. 11 October 2019. Retrieved 12 October 2019.
  17. "Malta Air: Dublin – Vienna". Ryanair. Retrieved 15 January 2020.
  18. "Global Airline Guide 2025 - Malta Air". Airliner World. September 2025. p. 66.

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