Ryanair switches Bremen for Bari

Monday 30 June 2008

Airline & Airport Updates

Low-cost airline Ryanair has announced a new cheap flight to Malta from the Italian city of Bari which will replace the current service to the island from Bremen, Germany.

The new flight will start in October, chief operating officer Michael Cawley revealed.

He told a press conference in Malta that the flights to Malta from Italy have been introduced amid expectations of tourism growth.

This follows suggestions from the cheap flights airline that it would look to cut the number of services it operates to Malta due to increased fuel costs and airport charges.

Mr Cawley told the Times of Malta: "We never threatened to pull any routes.

"Essentially, in winter our fares fall and certain routes consume a lot more fuel. What we did was offer to swap shorter routes for longer routes. Bari is part of that - we will deliver more passengers from here than Bremen."

The Ryanair representative said that if the new route is well received the airline will "think of establishing a base in Malta".

Ryanair currently offers flights to Malta from Dublin, London, Girona, Valencia, Stockholm and Venice, as well as Bremen.