Hermes Aviation (Malta International) is under investigation by the Italian civil aviation authority (L'Ente Nazionale per l'Aviazione Civile - ENAC) for the numerous delays its flights to Sicily and Italy have suffered since their launch in December last year.
The ItaliaVola flight blog says ENAC has raised concerns with its counterparts at the Maltese Department of Civil Aviation (DCAM) over Hermes Aviation's operational status quo given that very few of its FlyHermes flights have ever left on time. In some instances, it says, flights have left as long as a day late.
Vito Riggio, ENAC's president, has warned that unless the airline realigns the quality of its service to international standards and norms, it could be banned from serving Italy altogether.
Until recently, the Maltese operator had offered B737-400-operated flights from Malta International to Comiso and Palermo International in Sicily with onward connections to Turin Caselle in northern Italy. It has since emerged that two B737-300s have been secured to shore up its operations and to launch additional flights to other Italian cities.
