Malta Airport appeals to remove COVID restrictions as travel boosts

Mar 15 2022

The Malta International Airport has appealed for the removal of remaining travel restrictions as passenger traffic into the MIA increased sevenfold over the same month in 2021.

The traffic still remains 45.2% below pre-pandemic 2019 levels at 196,000. With traffic figures showing signs of demand-driven recovery in tourism, the MIA CEO Alan Borg has insisted the health authorities remove all remaining restrictions.

Last February’s traffic saw a significant increase of 24% over January, with Borg saying that this double digit growth indicates that the easing of travel restrictions unleashed a demand for air travel.

‘Further indicating that this increase was driven by demand rather than improved capacity, is the drop of 3% in February’s seat capacity compared to January’s’ he said. The seat load factor for February was just 5.1% lower than 2019 levels, standing at 70.7%.

Borg said that traffic results for February clearly indicate that two years into the WHO’s declaration of a pandemic, people are ready to travel.

‘At the same time, our industry is facing a spate of new uncertainties and challenges, such as rising oil prices which re likely to push up fares, which are stemming from the war in Ukraine’ said Borg. The CEO highlighted how summer is just weeks away and thus the health authorities need to remove any remaining restrictions.

This would also give industry stakeholders the confidence to invest in their business and ‘be optimistic for the future at this very delicate time.’

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Vaccine certificates could be extended to 12 to 17-year-olds

Mar 15 2022

Malta’s health authorities could be extending the vaccine certificate for children aged between 12 and 17 years who are not yet eligible for the booster shot.

Current EU rules state that a certificate is valid for nine months from the date of the primary vaccine doses were administered.

Malta’s rules however state that primary doses are valid for only three months, after which a booster dose must be taken. Minors are exempt from this rule as kids between 12 and 17 started inoculation at the end of June.

This means that certificates for those who were among the first to get the vaccine will soon expire. The certificate is required for travel purposes by many countries in the EU, including Malta.

Times of Malta revealed that when contacted, the health authorities confirmed that a possible extension of the duration of the vaccine certificate validity for 12 to 17 year olds is being discussed at EU levels.

The spokesperson said that a decision is expected in the coming days, but did not say if Malta will be offering those in this cohort a booster jab in the coming weeks. This comes following the recent authorisation of additional doses of the Pfizer jab for kids over 12.

Infection numbers among children and young people have thus remained stable in recent weeks following a record-breaking spike in January. So far however, the booster is only offered to those aged over 18.

As of yesterday, Malta has 1413 active cases, but only 49 are currently hospitalised, with 3 in the ITU. Meanwhile, 1,249,640 doses of the vaccine were administered, of which 346,666 are booster doses.

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Lewis Hamilton to change his name to include mother’s surname

Mar 15 2022

Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton has announced that he is changing his name as he defies the tradition of women losing their name when they get married.

Speaking on stage at the 2022 Dubai Expo, the athlete expressed great pride in his family’s name of Hamilton. However, he highlighted how his mum’s surname is Larbalestier.

‘And I’m just about to put that in my name. Because I don’t really fully understand the whole idea of why, when people get married, the woman loses her name. I really want her name to continue on with the Hamilton name.’

The name change probably won’t come into effect before the first race of the season in Bahrain this weekend. However, Hamilton did say that the name change will come very soon.

Carmen Larbalestier, now Lockhart, separated from his father Anthony Hamilton when the now F1 champion was just two years old. Both parents attend the same races, with Lewis expressing his joy at seeing them together at such events.

Hamilton will be up against Max Verstappen after the latter managed to conquer the title for Red Bull, albeit rather controversially. The last season’s events were document by Netflix’s Drive to Survive, despite many drivers not wishing to appear in the series.

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Zelenskyy visits and awards wounded Ukrainian soldiers in hospital

Mar 15 2022

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited wounded Ukrainian soldiers recovering at a military hospital after defending their country against the Russian invasion.

The President, who has been commended and praised for his bravery by various International figures and entities, went on to chat with the soldiers and award them medals. He gifted around 106 servicemen, with 17 of them being awarded posthumously.

The president also awarded and chatted with medical staff as they cared for the army members. Donning safety medical garments, he visited soldiers in ITUs, thanking them for their service.

The soldiers posed for selfies with the president, their faces lighting up as he acknowledged all they did for Ukraine. He also spoke to hospital management about the institution’s needs and the special measures being taken during the war.

Ukraine is still sustaining constant bombardment by Russian forces, with ‘fake referendums’ also being held in the south of the country after being taken under Russian control.

Zelenskyy said that Ukraine will stand the test. ‘We need time and strength to break the war machine that has come to our land.’ With around 596 civilians killed during the invasion, millions have fled their homes to find refuge in other countries.

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