ACI Europe presents Malta International Airport with Best Airport Award

Malta International Airport (MIA) was announced as the 2024 winner of the prestigious Best Airport Award for the five to 10 million passenger category by Airports Council International (ACI) Europe.

The award was presented to MIA during ACI Europe’s Best Airport Awards 2024 ceremony in Istanbul on Wednesday evening, with the airport beating competition from shortlisted peers Brussels Charleroi Airport and Seville Airport.

ACI Europe represents over 500 airports in 55 countries, with its members facilitating over 90 per cent of commercial air traffic in Europe.

MIA stated that the award was given to airports which showed exceptional resilience in 2023, “particularly in the areas of strategic foresight, operational management and financial performance.”

The awards were spread across five categories: Digital Transformation, Eco-Innovation, HR Excellence, World Business Partner and Best Airport (which was subsequently split into five additional awards according to airport size).

During 2023, the airport focused on establishing air links, diversifying revenue streams, and also laying the groundwork for the transformation of its campus.

“What we managed to achieve together this past year has far surpassed our expectations and would not have been possible without the contributions of every member of the Malta Airport team and our stakeholders,” MIA CEO Alan Borg stated, while thanking airport employees for their efforts.

“As we enter a truly transformational era for MIA, we will continue to build resilience into every facet of our operations to deliver a futureproof airport. We are not simply preparing for the future, but we are actively shaping it,” he added.

Taking to social media on Wednesday, Mr Borg said it was an honour to have accepted the award on behalf of the team, before thanking expressed gratitude to ACI Europe for recognising the MIA team’s “resilience, strategic foresight, and commitment to sustainability.”

Last year, MIA announced a five-year investment programme totalling €250 million, aimed at enhancing the airport’s infrastructure so that it can handle the increasing volumes of passengers, while also reaching its environmental targets.

MIA has embarked on an extensive terminal expansion project, the first phase of which is nearing completion, and is further digitising the passenger journey through the installation of new scanning equipment for hand luggage.

Additionally, the airport is also making significant headway on the Apron X development and laying the groundwork for the resurfacing of the primary runway.

A recent report from ACI Europe highlighted that MIA has made substantial progress in its direct air connectivity recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, despite still being behind in total air connectivity when compared to 2019. In his response to this, the MIA CEO said that the airport is primarily focused on expanding its network to cater for travel demand, rather than increasing the frequency of flights.