1928 : mails on wings

Abstract

On March 30, 1978 AIR MALTA, the national airline celebrates the fifth anniversary of its establishment. Two days later, on April 1, Malta celebrates the fiftieth anniversary of the first Air Mails. Aviation history in the Maltese Islands had its origin in 1916 when the Admiralty decided to set up the seaplane base at Kalafrana. In 1918, RAF Malta was formed and established a base at Fort Spinola (now the site of the Malta Hilton). In December 1918, the first air mails were in transit through Malta when an RAF plane carried some mail from England, via Malta and Egypt to Karachi. Following the devastations of World War I, Malta seems to have served as a transit station for a few experimental flights between England, India and Australia as well as the African Continent. [excerpt]