100th Anniversary of the First Flight from Malta

The seaplane of Captain Kilmers, with the Senglea viewpoint – a distinctive landmark of the Grand Harbour – in the background. Above, the semicircular inscription “FIRST FLIGHT FROM MALTA”. To the right, the dates “1915-2015”. At the lower left, the inscription “100TH ANNIVERSARY”; below, the initials “NGB” of the artist (Noel Galea Bason).

This 2-euro commemorative coin exists in two varieties. The 2-euro commemorative coins in the ST coin set were struck at the Dutch mint in Utrecht and therefore carry that mint's mark (MT-15 G2). The other coins carry no mintmark (MT-15 G1).

The Grand Harbour of Valletta is one of the most significant natural harbours in the Mediterranean and has for centuries been a pivotal point in Maltese history - as a fortress of the Knights of St John, as a British naval base, and as a hub between Europe and North Africa. It was in this context that, in 1915, in the midst of the First World War, the first documented powered flight from Maltese soil took place. Malta was at the time a British crown colony and played a central strategic role in the eastern Mediterranean, serving among other things as a hospital station and supply hub for allied operations in the Dardanelles campaign. That a seaplane took off from precisely the Grand Harbour was no coincidence: the sprawling harbour bay offered the only suitable takeoff area on the densely populated island.

Malta's aviation history remained closely tied to the Grand Harbour and the Second World War in the following decades, when between 1940 and 1942 the island was among the most heavily bombed areas in Europe and was collectively awarded the George Cross in 1942. Senglea, one of the three historic cities around the Grand Harbour, suffered heavy destruction during this period and stands to this day as a symbol of Maltese resilience. The Maltese government took the 100th anniversary of Malta's first flight in 2015 as the occasion to publicly commemorate this little-known chapter of the island's history.