‘It is our duty to assist’ – Air Malta operates its longest non-stop flight for humanitarian mission

The country’s national carrier, Air Malta, operated its longest and farthest non-stop flight earlier today as it transported 135,690 AstraZeneza COVID-19 vaccines to Kigali, Rwanda.

These vaccines were donated by the Government of Malta to the African nation.

Flight KM7510 spanned seven hours and covered 2426 nautical miles. It departed Malta at 2:00am this morning and landed in Kigali at 9:00am.

“We are proud to again offer our assistance to transport this humanitarian assistance donated by the Maltese people to an African nation,” Air Malta Executive Chairman David G. Curmi said.

“The WHO recently states that Africa needs seven times more COVID-19 vaccines than it currently receives to meets its target of fully vaccinating 70% of its population by September 2022,” he continued.

The flight was flown by Air Malta’s youngest Airbus A320neo aircraft. This model offers additional range, 20 per cent lower fuel costs, is more environmentally friendly, and has a 50 per cent smaller noise footprint than the older Airbus A320ceo models.

“As an airline that believes in equality and solidarity, it is our duty to assist in such situation and be part of this global effort to help other parts of the world achieve immunity against this disease,” Mr Curmi noted.

“Air Malta will continue to be of strategic importance to the islands by offering its support when the need arises,” he concluded.

The national carrier has taken an active role in helping the Maltese government distribute COVID-19 vaccines abroad. Last August, Air Malta transported 40,000 vaccines and a similar number of rapid testing kits to Libya.