Gozo air service

I would like to comment on how a viable air service to and from Gozo can be implemented..

First of all, the overall costs of any helicopter able to carry a passenger configuration of 12 or more when compared to a fixed-wing aircraft with the same passenger capacity is nearly five times more costly. Not surprisingly, the Gozo helicopter service could not have lasted longer than it already has with the prices that were on offer with the number of passengers that used the service annually.

For the Gozo helicopter service to make a profit the price of a ticket would have to be nearly three times what it is now, thus drastically reducing the number of passengers who would be prepared to use the service.

As regards a fixed-wing aircraft service, this is definitely going to be the number one choice of all interested parties since it is financially viable, cheaper to run, and possibly faster. A lot of dust was kicked up by environmentalists when this idea was initially mooted by Government. All this could have been avoided had professional advice been taken up from both sides to come up with a viable solution.

The type of airstrip most suitable for Gozo, with the least environmental impact regarding landscaping, is a grass strip. This type of strip blends in beautifully with the surrounding environment making it hard even to notice from the air.

Abroad, farmers are adequately compensated for loss of income from the land used as an air grass strip and also have the option to be paid for maintaining the same strip in a condition suitable for take-off and landing.

This now brings me to the length of the runway. Many people have the impression that a long and wide runway equal to Luqa's longest runway is going to be needed, which is definitely not the case. If that were really the case I would be one of the first to object.

A fixed-wing aircraft with STOL (Short Takeoff and Landing) capabilities fully loaded with a maximum capacity of 18 passengers at the worst time of the day at around noon in a Maltese summer (around 40°C) will require no more than 3,000 feet of runway length for a safe departure which is only slightly more than one-fourth of Luqa's longest runway, not forgetting again that this is a grass strip surrounded by its natural environment and not tarmac.

The approach path and departing track can be set accordingly and not necessarily as a straight track still within safety limits of the aircraft, and most important of all, still keeping passenger comfort in mind where at no time will the aircraft be flying over any inhabited areas, hence no concern for any direct noise pollution.

I can well say that, nowadays, with ever improving technology and more environment-oriented people, engine manufacturers have no option but to make quieter engines and have been doing so for at least 10 years. With respect to all this I can quite happily say that a modern turbo-prop aircraft equipped with STOL capability falls well within a lower noise emission category than a larger type of helicopter needed to transport the average 12 persons at any one go.

There is still some thought of maybe having a service to Gozo using a seaplane. This is not suitable for the following reasons. Firstly, a seaplane is simply a normal general aviation aircraft fitted with floats that was designed for sea conditions found in a lake or river and not in an open sea environment as in the Maltese Islands.

Secondly, the amount of corrosion incurred by a seaplane during sea operations is enormous, thus resulting in a huge amount of related expenditure to treat this corrosion on a regular basis. Due to this the aircraft's lifespan will be drastically reduced in relation to that of normal land operated aircraft.

Thirdly, this service could not only be cancelled for inferior aeronautical weather conditions but could also get cancelled for moderate sea conditions. Sea conditions and weather conditions do not necessarily work in conjunction with each other. After the passage of bad weather it could well take three days for the sea conditions to return to a relatively calm condition even though within those three days the weather looked otherwise fine. Could one imagine on a beautiful clear windless sky having to tell a passenger that the service could not be provided because of a moderate swell?

The final reason why a seaplane service will not prove viable is that the insurance on one of these aircraft for carrying passengers is beyond belief since the operator is now responsible for carrying passengers in the air as well as on the sea.

I would like to conclude with a few official statistics. In the last three years the Gozo helicopter service carried an average of 40,000 passengers a year to and from Gozo of whom 73 per cent were tourists. The discontinuation of the Gozo air service will mean that many tourists who are ready to pay for it will have to undergo all the hassle of travelling to Gozo first by coach, then by boat, and by coach again, and then repeat all this on the return journey.

Most probably the construction of an airstrip will come in for a good deal of criticism. However, once its benefits start to be reaped by people in the tourism industry, both in Malta and in Gozo, criticism will soon cease, especially since the type of tourist who will use this service will be of the higher-spending category.