Malta-based Medavia has made its entire staff of pilots and crew redundant and cancelled a number of its contracts, in a move that has left a team stuck in troubled South Sudan.

The airline, which operates regular flights between Malta and Libya, introduced the mass redundancies due to the coronavirus outbreak that has grounded flights worldwide.

Some 20 pilots and six crew were told they would lose their jobs, company sources told Times of Malta.

It is understood that the airline had cancelled two major contracts it had with the United Nations to run flights in and out of South Sudan, ferrying personnel working for nongovernmental organisations to and from the troubled region.    

One flight, for the World Food Bank, was left grounded there on Tuesday, with its two pilots and crew unable to return home, sources said.   

Crew stranded in conflict zone

The crew were unable to fly out of the country as it was deemed unsafe to attempt to leave without UN protection.  

A seven-year-long civil war in South Sudan was brought to a peaceful end in February following the formation of a unity government.  However, the region still remains prone to violence and is home to a number of armed militia.

Some 400,000 people are estimated to have been killed in the fighting that has raged since 2013.  

A spokesman for Medavia said that the company is doing its utmost to get the former employees out of the country safely.    

“We will not abandon them there. We are working around the clock to get them back safely,” he said. 

Staff shocked by move

The spokesman added that the move to cancel UN contracts and to introduce redundancy for a number of employees was a "painful decision” made in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.  

Company sources meanwhile said they had been shocked by the airline’s decision to let go all of its pilots without attempting to hash out a plan.   

Mediterranean Aviation Co. Ltd., known as Medavia, is based in Ħal Safi and employs about 100 staff. 

The airline operates regular flights between Malta and Libya under a Maltese licence. It also operates charter flights to Italy and provides aircraft management and ground handling services.

The airline was established in Malta in 1978 on a joint initiative of the Maltese and Libyan governments. 

The company, with its own fleet of aircraft, first made its name running charter flights to and from remote airfields run by the oil and gas industry.