Spectacular airshow

I have been following the correspondence regarding the Malta airshow and the mixed reactions to the event. Undoubtedly, the noise level of some of the aircraft at the show was very high and this understandably led to angry reactions by some. But when one considers that this is an annual event and it only happens over three days, it just goes to explain that we are ever so ready to moan and grumble at anything that is not to our liking, without considering all factors, including the likes of other people.

The airshow is not a destructive event, it is not some event that is prohibited to be enjoyed by other people. It is rather, an international open-air event to be enjoyed by all, by those who choose to visit the airshow and those who choose to stay around the airport or just watch the displays from the roofs at their house.

Having been to the airshow myself, I saw many other items on show that were not noisy at all. I can still picture the perfect display by a fire-fighting plane that demonstrated the agility and effectiveness of fighting fire by planes. There were also many other propeller-driven aircraft that are obviously not noisy at all, helicopters, and an engine-less glider that showed yet another facet of aviation. Coming to the jets now, a brief look at the souvenir programme shows just seven items that are potentially noisy.

A few seconds of flying by each aircraft over three days adds to no more than two minutes. There are 525,600 minutes in a year and just two minutes out of over half a million minutes is surely not a very valid reason for one to complain, that is unless one is ever so ready not to share this world with others. Fast jets add to the spice of an airshow and, combined with other types of aircraft that are less fast and less noisy, make the event a complete show.

The Malta airshow is an event where one can admire the organisational skills of all the Maltese involved from queuing to get to the gate, to parking to walking around the public areas etc. Hats off to Malta International Airport and all other organisations involved in putting up yet another international event that makes Malta proud.