Malta MedAir (MT, Malta International) has launched scheduled operations independent of its sister airline Air Malta (Malta International), for which it has so far served as a wet-lease provider, the Times of Malta has reported.
The airline operated its first in-house scheduled service under its own "MM" code, from Malta International to Warsaw Chopin and return, on August 1.
Economic Services Minister Silvio Schembri said that Malta MedAir would henceforth operate more scheduled services on its own behalf rather than for Air Malta. It will also add more locally-based staff in the coming weeks.
Malta MedAir operates a single A320-200, 9H-AEO (msn 2768). During the COVID-19-induced grounding, the aircraft was partially repainted and currently sports the Malta MedAir name on its fuselage, as opposed to the earlier Air Malta branding. The general brand image of the airline remains very similar to Air Malta's.
Malta MedAir was set up in 2018 mostly to take over Air Malta's landing slots at London Heathrow. Both airlines are wholly-owned by the government. The Maltese authorities have repetitively warned in the past that if the unions at Air Malta do not soften their stance on salaries and terms of employment, government will shift more work to Malta MedAir, which is not bound by the same collective labour agreements.
According to the ch-aviation fleets module, Air Malta operates five A320-200s and three A320-200Ns.
