The Lm40,000 and Lm50,000 mentioned by Investments, Industry and IT Minister Austin Gatt in parliament on 3 July (TMID, 5 July) were not offered to Maltese pilots locally but to a couple of senior Maltese pilots who would have to live in the United Kingdom. The offer was made back in 2005.
Dr Gatt fails to compare like with like when he states that a Maltese pilot would be earning more than a foreign pilot in the UK.
A Maltese captain working in the UK would earn Lm50,000, less accommodation and transport costs. He would effectively earn about Lm36,000.
A UK-based captain working in Malta would earn about Lm55,000 and Air Malta would pay for his accommodation and transport – therefore an equivalent of Lm19,000 more than a Maltese pilot.
The Airline Pilot Transport Association (ALPA) was prepared to accept such salaries, even though foreign counterparts would be earning 50 per cent more. Agreement was not reached because Air Malta refused to guarantee a net amount for part of the salary.
Other airlines operating in the United Kingdom offer much higher salaries, better conditions and a stable roster, when compared to Air Malta. For example, Ryan Air offers Lm55,900 for a normal captain. A training captain would earn much more.
Air Malta requires Maltese pilots to work in the UK to provide a stable operation in the UK base as foreign pilots in the UK are constantly leaving, most probably due to below industry standard salaries and conditions. In fact, Air Malta currently has 21 foreign pilots working in the UK, while Dr Gatt mentioned that Air Malta has employed 51 foreign pilots since 2005. This means that, within this short period, 30 foreign pilots have resigned from the UK bases.
In its Malta base, Air Malta has lost a further 31 Maltese pilots since 2004 and a further six foreign pilots within the last few months. The most recent Maltese pilot resignation was on the 19th of last month.
The number of pilots in Malta is not large enough to maintain the number of aircraft and the type of operation Air Malta has in Malta, let alone supplement the United Kingdom operation. Contrary to what Dr Gatt said, not all annual vacation leave is being granted. Last year, Air Malta only granted half the pilots’ annual vacation leave entitlement. According to the current leave plan Air Malta has issued, this year seems to be no different.
A loss of 67 pilots in a short period of about three years is a large blow for a small airline like Air Malta, and a clear indication that things are not right.
We are only asking for what the international market is dictating; other airlines pay much more than double what a Maltese pilot earns. The last thing we want is to have our pilots going to work
feeling disillusioned and unappreciated.
All this bearing in mind the responsibility we carry at work, while requiring all the mental ability to manage nature’s bad weather and the other stressful situations that come with the job. Take last April’s near miss over the Maltese skies for starters.
Capt. James Fenech
ALPA Malta President