Air Malta reaches agreement with ALPA over collective agreement

An agreement has been reached between the Air Malta and its pilots over a new collective agreement, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat announced this evening. The new conditions will now have to be endorsed by the union's members in a vote, before it can be signed.

The announcement was made following last-ditch talks between the government, Air Malta and ALPA – the pilots union.

The union had been locked in talks with the airline over a new collective agreement for months.

On Sunday Prime Minsiter Joseph Muscat said the government would not be blackmailed by the airline's pilots and that it was considering fall-back options in the eventuality an agreement could not be reached.

Earlier this evening

Two aircraft with accompanying flight crew arrived in Malta on Monday evening as tensions between Air Malta and its pilots reached a climax, after the union requested its members' authorisation to start industrial action over what it described as serious threats and intimidation against a first officer by a senior manager at the company.

A total of six aircraft were leased by the airline as part of a contingency plan to ensure continuity of its operations in the eventuality that pilots decide to strike.