Transport Malta Director General for Civil Aviation Charles Pace on Tuesday criticised a lack of planning with regards to the aviation industry’s recovery across Europe. He was particularly critical of Governments allowing health systems to “dictate draconian measures”.

Mr Pace remarked that struggles across European airports do not stem from people not wanting to work in the industry, but “due to airports not planning ahead”.

However, he added, the “root cause” is that “Governments were much too late in calling an end to restrictions”.

“Airports maybe understandably did not recruit because they had no assurance that restrictions would be lifted,” he said, before adding that efforts to “recruit and retrain people in the middle of a peak season were suicidal”.

The aviation industry’s “mess” is mainly down to “Governments abdicating from their responsibilities of government and allowing health systems to dictate draconian measures when not needed,” he continued.

Airports and airlines across Europe are facing a number of challenges this summer, as they fight to keep their operations ongoing despite a sharp and unprecedented recovery in the tourism industry. This has led to several flight delays and cancellations, something Air Malta plc Executive Chairman David Curmi described as "unacceptable".

“Health systems do not understand the economy and seem to believe that the money required for their own existence doesn’t need any form of active trade and possibly grows on trees,” Mr Pace concluded.

Mr Pace is an aviation industry veteran, spending 24 years at Air Malta as Captain, before bringing his experience to Transport Malta in 2013, initially joining as Director. Following almost three years in the position, he was named Director General for Civil Aviation CAD.