Air Malta's flight to Vienna on Friday was cancelled after a leased aircraft needed urgent maintenance. 

In an internal message seen by Times of Malta, the airline said the emergency at short notice left Air Malta without an aircraft.

Passengers were informed beforehand of the cancellation to the Austrian capital and alternative travel plans were made. 

"The team has been working very hard to replace the aircraft which seems difficult as we are not the only airline looking for capacity," Air Malta's commercial officer Paul Sies said.

He said the airline might be forced to make further adjustments to its network in the coming days.

"We do everything possible to prevent cancellations, but sometimes we have no choice. The call centre has been staffed additionally and will be open the whole weekend... Soon we will have our own 10 aircraft back in fleet."

Read: Hasty, unstudied decisions blamed for Air Malta's recent flight disruptions