A Ryanair flight arriving from Vienna officially marked the re-opening of Malta International Airport following the partial lifting of a travel ban which came into effect in March.

Passengers arriving on board the first commercial flight to land in Malta in over three months were given a special welcome by the airport team in celebration of this important occasion for both Malta International Airport and the local tourism industry.

By the end of the day, the runway will have seen a total of 13 departures and 11 arriving flights from airports in Austria, Poland, Germany, Spain, Italy and Ireland.

Addressing a press conference held earlier today, Malta International Airport CEO Alan Borg described the re-opening as the start of a challenging journey towards recovery and expressed his confidence that the close cooperation of all industry stakeholders would eventually lead to reaching sustainable tourism numbers once again.

Mr Borg went on to thank the airport team for their sterling work in getting the terminal ready for the re-opening, which was quite a feat given the many health and safety measures that had to be implemented to safeguard passengers’ and airport employees’ health. He also thanked the Ministry for Tourism and the Malta Tourism Authority for the continuous support given to partner airlines as the COVID-19 situation evolved.

Minister for Tourism and Consumer Protection Julia Farrugia Portelli highlighted the importance of the re-opening of tourism to our economy, especially given that this sector represents 30 per cent of Malta's economy.

“Today we are expecting 11 incoming flights and another 12 tomorrow, with a total of 81 different flights during this week. We are also looking forward to welcoming around 700,000 tourists by the end of the year,” said Minister Farrugia Portelli, whilst applauding all entities that worked tirelessly to make today’s re-opening possible.

Minister for the Economy, Investment and Small Businesses Silvio Schembri thanked all involved in the re-opening of Malta International Airport; a crucial driver of the island’s economy.

“We have embarked on a journey of new normality. Today, we are witnessing a milestone which we have achieved together through strong collaboration and not without sacrifices. I look forward to seeing tourists enjoying the beauty of our islands once again, while attracting new investment which shall complement our strong aviation cluster,” said Minister Schembri.