The statement in Parliament by the Minister for Gozo Clint Camilleri that the Government will “in the coming weeks” announce its plans for a “small airfield in Gozo” and launch a public consultation on it, is, the Gozo Tourism Association said,“most welcomed news towards inter- island connectivity.”

The Association in a statement on Friday, said that such infrastructure will be the latest loop in the inter-island connectivity chain, after the introduction of the Fast Ferry Service, between Valletta and Mgarr in June, 2021, and the introduction of the fourth ferry to the Gozo Channel fleet in June 2019.

“These are all additions that have remarkably improved the sea link between Gozo and Malta. Furthermore, the inauguration of the second fibre optic cable in December, 2020, between the two major Maltese Islands, was another infrastructural project that upgraded the digital connectivity for Gozo,” said the GTA.

Considering these latest additional modes of connectivity, the Gozo Tourism Association stressed that it is “certain that the fruition of these three important steps in connectivity were achieved since there was no doubt, the political commitment to implement them.”The Association also noted the Government’s intent to introduce a fixed-wing airlink between Malta and Gozo, a mode of transport that has been on the Association’s agenda for the last twenty years,” it said.

Such a link will complement the sea link, it said, “whilst providing a convenient and less time-consuming inter- island transfer for tourists and Gozitans alike between the Malta International Airport and Gozo. The establishment of the fixed-wing inter-islands operation will not only enhance connectivity, but it will open up new job opportunities here on Gozo.”

The Association said that “the rough time, especially for the touristic sector, brought about by the global covid- 19 pandemic, should not discourage us, on the contrary this should be the appropriate time to continue improving Gozo’s touristic offer, by expanding, enhancing and facilitating further tourists’ commuting to destination Gozo.”

The GTA concluded by saying that, “like the three aforementioned modes of connectivity, if there is strong political will, this next step in the inter-island connectivity will be achieved. Gozo as an established distinct tourism destination deserved this airlink yesterday.”

Bottom photo: GTA

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