Passengers were left stranded at the airport on Monday as an Air Malta flight from Malta to Palermo was delayed by more than 15 hours. 

A lightning strike and "extraordinary" levels of crew sickness led to the delay, the airline said.

Flight KM662, which was scheduled to depart at 5.30am failed to materialise, leaving irate passengers in the dark about the situation. The flight is now scheduled to depart Malta International Airport at 10pm.

One disgruntled passenger told Times of Malta that passengers had been waiting for hours without being told what was happening. "Everyone is super angry," he said. 

Passengers waiting in Palermo to fly to Malta on the return flight were also affected.

A spokesman for Air Malta said the airline had experienced a number of unexpected challenges with scheduling.

He said that two aircraft had experienced technical issues including one that was struck by lightning. There had been an unexpected number of crew members who called in sick, he added.  

Air Malta later sent out a tweet apologising for the situation. 

"Safety remains Air Malta's top priority," it said.