Gozo gets a heliport

Abstract

Getting a bird's eye view of Gozo was until recently a privilege reserved to our avian friends and to a few aviators who flew military helicopters and light aircraft. Common mortals could, at best, walk up to the Citadel or climb upon the summit of ta' Obiegi hill, the island's highest point, and gaze around with one's eyes and imagination, fancying how it might appear hovering from above. This is now a thing of the past. On June 27th 1990, Malta Air Charter- a subsidiary of Air Malta, the Republic's national airline- initiated a regular helicopter service from the Malta International Airport to Gozo and vice-versa and at the same time introduced a number of panoramic flights over the Maltese Islands. The 27th June 1990, was a day of immense importance for the budding high class tourism towards which the island of Gozo is aiming. This red letter day does not however mark the first flight between the islands. In June 1943, during the closing months of the Second World War in Europe, the British Air Ministry and the American Air Force decided to build an airstrip on Gozo to facilitate the invasion of Sicily. [excerpt]