Air Malta has appointed Captain Clifford Chetcuti as CEO from September 1. He will be reporting to the chairman and to the board of directors.
Capt. Chetcuti will be using his expertise to focus on the improvement of efficiencies in Air Malta’s organisational structure and its brand image, ensuring it is prepared to become the airline of the Mediterranean.
Capt. Chetcuti has vast experience in the aviation industry particularly in-flight operations, training and aviation practices. During his experience abroad, he was instrumental to develop successfully operational areas with Emirates and Qatar Airways.
He started his career in aviation as a cadet pilot with Air Malta in 1987 and completed his training at Air Service Training in Perth, Scotland where he was the recipient of the Principals Award as Pilot of the Year 1988.
He joined Emirates in 1994 and was promoted to Captain in 1999, where his career path saw him progress through various managerial roles within the company. He was a Captain on the Emirates inaugural A380 flight from Dubai to New York in August 2008.
He left Emirates in 2016 to join Qatar Airways initially as a consultant on organisational and operational aspects of the Flight Training Department. Subsequently he was appointed vice president, Flight Training, and head of the Approved Training Organisation, managing more than 4,000 pilots as the Nominated Person for Flight Training.
He was director of the Deployed Response Group responsible for the overall management of the Incident Management Centre for Qatar Airways and member of the Qatar Airways Group Safety and Security Committee.
Capt. Chetcuti’s strength is his influencing leadership style that empowers his team to deliver results. His broad experience in management of change focuses on establishing sound processes which deliver pragmatic and efficient organisational outcomes.
He flew the Boeing 737, Airbus A300, A310, A320, A330, A340, A350 and A380 and has more than 15,000 hours of flying experience gaining a vast understanding of the Airbus systems and philosophies.
Clifford received his education at St Aloysius College and the University of Malta, where he interrupted his B. Mech. Eng. degree to join Air Malta cadet pilot programme.
Capt. Chetcuti replaces Joseph Galea, who has been occupying the position of acting CEO of the national airline since 2016. Mr Galea joined Air Malta in 2014 as deputy CCO but was given the post of acting CEO in 2016 at a time when the airline was in discussion with Alitalia on a possible strategic partnership.