25 years ago - The Times

Tuesday, May 24, 1994

Man questioned after explosion outside police inspector’s home

The police were yesterday evening questioning a man in connection with an explosion at the home of Police Inspector Michael Cassar in Żabbar.

The house, in Santa Domenica Street, was structurally damaged but no one was injured.

Fellow policemen showed their sympathy for Inspector Cassar by going to his house and starting to repair the damage.

The explosion was caused by a metal cylinder packed with explosives. The device is known as a pipe bomb. It was placed on the left-hand side of the marble doorstep.

It exploded at around 1.30am just a few feet away from the bedrooms where Inspector Cassar, his wife, and two children, were sleeping.

The bomb, believed to have contained a low explosive substance, destroyed the door and caused considerable structural damage.

The windows and glass doors of houses opposite were shattered and ornaments were reported to have been thrown from shelves.

Several people living in the street were still in a state of shock yesterday morning.

Half a century ago - Times of Malta

Saturday, May 24, 1969

Importance of Gozo-Malta air link

The model of the proposed airstrip on display at the Banca Giuratale aroused great interest. For an island which suffered greatly on account of its insularity, the air service which the Malta Gozo Air Services Ltd are proposing is expected to be a boom.

Naturally enough, it will be patronised by the lavish tourist and until the proposed new harbour at Mġarr becomes, if ever, fully operational, it will be extremely beneficial.

As regards the handling of urgent medical cases, its use might be a sterling service for decades to come since it is most unlikely that the General Hospital due to be built at Victoria be run by specialised pesonnel as in the case of government hospitals in Malta.

The commencement of the service depends on the availability of facilities to land in Gozo. The cost of the Xewkija airstrip is estimated at £125,000 but as pointed out during the recent Civic Council sitting the construction of an airfield which provides the minimum landing facilities cost approximately £20,000.

That the service be commissioned is the opinion of every Gozitan concerned with the venture.