I am not an Air Malta employee, nor do I have any relatives or friends who are Air Malta employees. If the pilots’ union continues to behave in the way that it is and calls industrial action, then it is clear that the end of the airline is near.

I do not believe that the plight of Air Malta is the fault of the employees either. I believe that it is the fault of successive PN administrations and perks taken by the ‘fat cats’. Air Malta was overstaffed for years and there was never any attempt to ensure that the airline would be viable in the long term. It has always lived day by day. At first it was live day by day and offer as many jobs as you can to those who ‘deserve’ them. Then it was live day by day and manage to cope with the massive haemorage that these bad work practices caused.

But if the pilots strike now, then Air Malta might as well fold. It is barely scraping through day by day. A strike by the pilots would be a travesty to the nation, Air Malta is more than just an airline, it’s a lifeline. It needs to become viable, competitive and able to operate in a market where seat cost is now the biggest priority. One hopes they see reason.

John Lauri

Swieqi