Air Malta’s Chief Pilot, Captain Joe Maniscalco, has retired after an aviation career spanning four decades and over 21,600 flight hours. He was responsible for the airline’s flight crew, policy and procedures manuals, and day-to-day flight operations support.
On Thursday (August 5, 2021), Air Malta announced the retirement of their Chief Pilot, Captain Joe Maniscalco after an aviation career spanning four decades and 21,600 flying hours. After completing his last flight on Wednesday evening (August 4, 2021), Captain Maniscalco was greeted by Air Malta’s Executive Chairman, David G. Curmi, who congratulated him on his illustrious aviation career. As the airline’s Chief Pilot, Captain Maniscalco was responsible for Air Malta’s flight crew, policy and procedure manuals, and day-to-day flight operations support.
In Thursday’s announcement, Air Malta's Executive Chairman, David G. Curmi, said,
“Capt. Maniscalco joined the airline as a trainee clerk, a few years after Air Malta was first established. He climbed the ladder to eventually lead our flight crew. On behalf of Air Malta and its staff, I thank Capt. Joe Maniscalco for his contribution, loyalty, leadership, and passion for the airline and wish him a happy well-earned retirement.”
Also commenting on his retirement, Captain Maniscalco added,
“A pilot’s job is rewarding but challenging at the same time. We go through a lot of training and proficiency checks and put safety as the top priority. Each flight is unique, with its changing weather conditions, airport, aircraft, crew, and passengers.
“Throughout my flying career, it always felt good to have a great Air Malta team onboard and this is all thanks to our professional crew. I look back at all these years and find many happy memories that I will treasure. I wish to also thank the management and staff at Head Office for their assistance during my term as Chief Pilot. It has been a pleasure to work at Air Malta and to see happy customers satisfied with their flight.”
Captain Joe Maniscalco joined Air Malta in 1979 as a trainee clerk. After seven years, an internal opportunity arose for the company’s employees to obtain a commercial pilot’s license. After being selected, he started his training in Perth, Scotland, eventually being type rated on the Boeing 737-200. In July 1990, Captain Maniscalco also obtained a type rating on the Airbus A320 in Toulouse, France. At that time, Air Malta was one of the first carriers to operate the modern fly-by-wire aircraft. Captain Maniscalco achieved a major milestone in his career when he commanded his first flight in June 1995, eventually rising to the position of Chief Pilot in August 2018.
Source: Air Malta