Eight pilots were paid €2.7m to leave Air Malta

There were 12 Air Malta pilots who took advantage of the airline’s early retirement scheme, Tourism Minister Karmenu Vella told Justyne Caruana (PL) in reply to a parliamentary question. Eight pilots collectively received €2,730,698. Another pilot will be receiving €4,777 a month until 2023, when he would have retired. Three others are expected to benefit from a scheme by the end of the year for an estimated total of €988,076. The Tourism Ministry said the scheme was launched in December. It said three other pilots were expected to benefit from the scheme by the end of this year in line with agreements reached under the previous administration.