Marvic
The Enemed MAviO 2023 conference and awards set new standards with regards to the Promotion of the Maltese aviation scene. This came as a result of an agreement signed between MAviO And KEY Publishing which was spearheaded by the ever enterprising CEO Ms Marvic Bugeja. This latter collaboration resulted in the first ever MALTA SPECIAL being published on the world’s biggest selling civil aviation magazine, Airliner World. Former editor, Gordon Smith who was also one of the main speakers at the conference, put in his immense weight to secure the deal.
As customary, MAviO worked hard to secure the presence of a major aircraft manufacturer. The incessant effort put in by Joanne Calleja and Stephen Gauci paid off, when ATOL Aviation confirmed their attendance. CEO Anssi Rekula and Chief Technical Officer Risto Pajuniemi mesmerised the deleagtes present, with a presentation on the ATOL Aurora but more importantly they chose MAviO 2023 to reveal the e-Seaplane. The proposed 13-seat aircraft has folding wings and is the first seaplane in the world that can berth at any marina in the Mediterranean.
The meetup was fully booked days in advance. Other high-level speakers that intervened during MAviO 2023 included aeroTELEGRAPH publisher Stefan Eiselin, who made an interesting comparison between Malta and penguins. Stefan’s presentation was complimented by TM-CAD officials Chris Balzia and Victoria Grech as well as architect Daniel Portelli.
As always, the Salini Resort main hall was abuzz with anticipation as MAviO Awards coordinator Joanne Calleja revealed the winners. Aviator of the Year was won by Captain Noel Abela, Leader of the Year went to Colonel Mark Said while the Lifetime Achievement Award was bestowed upon Captain Ray Zarb having set up the first private aviation training school on the island.
Chris
