Ryanair buys out government's stake in Malta Air

The government has sold its stake in Malta Air, the low-fare airline launched in 2019, to Ryanair, Times of Malta can confirm.

The move, first reported by industry portal Fresh Aviation, is believed to have taken place several months ago, under the watch of the then Tourism Minister Clayton Bartolo.

The sale is in line with pre-contractual agreements signed at the time of the airline’s launch, when Konrad Mizzi held the tourism portfolio. 

When the airline was first announced in 2019, the government held a golden share, giving it rights over the Malta Air name and veto rights over the airline’s potential sale.

Sources say the agreement stipulated that Ryanair had the right to buy out the government's share in the airline after a certain period of time, effectively forcing the government to relinquish its stake in the company.

The airline’s launch was trumpeted as a demonstration of Ryanair’s long-term commitment to Malta, with the airline carrying a fleet of six Malta Air-branded aircrafts by 2022, with Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary promising to grow the fleet in years to come.

The sale of the government’s share means that Ryanair is now the airline’s sole shareholder.

Aside from Malta Air, Ryanair runs several other similar subsidiary operators, including Malta-based Lauda Europe, Polish airline Buzz and Ryanair UK, established shortly after Brexit.

Ryanair dominates the Maltese flight market. According to a Central Bank study, the ariline offered just under half (49%) of the 10.3 million seats available on scheduled flights last year.

KM Malta Airlines, the national flag carrier, came in at a distant second with 22% of the available seats. The data on KM Malta Airlines includes the flight operated by its predecessor Air Malta, which ceased operations at the end of March 2024.