NEWS | Wednesday, 19 September 2007

Air Malta takes up Bologna route

In line with its expansionist strategy in Italy, this winter Air Malta will be commencing schedule operations to Bologna’s G. Marconi Airport in what seems to be the final chapter in a war of words with budget carrier Ryanair after Bologna was vacated by Italian low cost airline Meridiana.
Air Malta will offer a twice weekly service starting from mid December.
The Bologna route was requested by Ryanair when Meridiana pulled out but the Irish low cost carrier faced stiff opposition from Air Malta, which was initially only interested in operating the route throughout the summer months.
Bologna will be Air Malta’s eighth scheduled destination in Italy. This route is being launched a few months after the Maltese airline expanded its Rome service to three daily frequencies and introduced direct services to Venice and Naples while increasing its intra-European flights from its Catania base. In order to enhance its marketing and distribution penetration in the Italian market, Air Malta has recently code-shared its Rome services with Italy’s largest privately owned airline – Air One.
In a news release yesterday, Air Malta also announced that the Bologna service will be included in its latest promotion ‘Thank God For Wednesdays’ whereby every week Air Malta is offering three destinations at Lm3 / 6.99Euros one-way fares (excluding taxes and fuel surcharge).
Air Malta is currently awaiting slot clearance from the relevant airport authorities and expects to welcome the first bookings as from next week. Bologna’s G. Marconi Airport is now the third most important International Airport in Italy, experiencing a growth of 8.5% last year over 2005.
Air Malta said it was its policy is to service the main international and regional airports to compliment its full service treatment values. “With its brand new more environmentally-friendly aircraft fleet together with quality in-flight entertainment, Air Malta is making sure that it continues to be the best value focused carrier operating the Malta route. The Maltese airline prides itself of offering these services without resorting to charge ludicrously hidden charges to its passengers when booking online, checking-in their luggage and when using the traditional check-in services,” the statement said.