Air Malta’s first offering of digital in-flight entertainment will feature Maltese content, marking a number of firsts for Malta’s aviation and TV production industries.

This is the first time homegrown productions will be offered to airline passengers.

It is also the first deployment of in-flight entertainment by the national airline.

Speaking to WhosWho.mt, an Air Malta representative confirmed that the content will come from “numerous contributors”.

Through the Blueview digital experience, passengers will be able to connect their devices to the plane’s intranet and access a slew of programming via a browser-based portal.

Air Malta said that the choice of using passengers’ own personal electronic devices keeps the weight load to a minimum, keeping the plane light and more efficient.

The deal was announced by Bluebox Aviation Systems, which was selected by Air Malta to deploy its Blueview system on the airline’s new Airbus A320 neo aircraft.

“Blueview will be configured to offer Air Malta’s passengers an in-flight entertainment experience – entertainment, moving map, games, etc. – and will be deployed on a linefit Airbus Airspace Link installation,” said Bluebox.

“This new aircraft is expected to be delivered to Air Malta next month, and the Blueview digital passenger experience will be live for passengers when the aircraft enters service.”

As part of a fleet replacement project, a further three new 180-seater Airbus A320neo aircraft will be joining Air Malta’s fleet.

The state-of-the-art, fuel efficient and more environmentally friendly aircraft is expected to be the cornerstone of Air Malta’s planned new fleet.

The project with Air Malta represents Bluebox’s third customer deployment for its wireless digital services platform Blueview on an Airbus Airspace Link installation.

A project with Jetstar Group was announced in 2022, and the company’s first Airspace Link deployment was with Titan Airways in 2020.

“As our industry recovers from one of the most challenging periods we’ve ever experienced, it’s exciting to see some real momentum on two fronts – the demand for digital services in all its forms, from IFE to onboard retail, but also the fact we’re seeing new aircraft coming into the global fleet that are to be kitted out from the start with our digital services platform,” said Kevin Birchmore, VP Global Sales at Bluebox.

“We’re excited to be included in the growth ambitions of customers like Air Malta, intent on offering their passengers the best onboard experience they can, and to be helping deliver that with Blueview.”

Blueview is an innovative software platform that provides both the browser-based portal through which passengers can view and access a range of digital services on board, as well as all the underlying functionality which ensures the secure delivery of content, third-party app integration, content management and analytics.

Bluebox describes it as “a digital eco-system offering airlines the ability to engage and entertain their passengers on board and earn ancillary revenue for the airline in the process.”