Malta part of the newly formed Kingdom of Sicily which also covered the island of Sicily and the southern half of the Italian Peninsula. The Catholic Church was reinstated as the state religion with Malta under the See of Palermo, and some Norman architecture sprung up around Malta especially in its ancient capital Mdina. Tancred, King of Sicily, the last Norman monarch, made Malta a fief of the kingdom and installed a count of Malta. As the islands were much desired due to their strategic importance, it was during this time the men of Malta were militarised to fend off capture
Malta (island) nationalised as "Malta Public Transport" by the Maltese government, with a new bus operator to take over their operations in the near future. Malta has three large natural harbours: There is also a man-made harbour at Ċirkewwa. This is connected with Mġarr Harbour on Gozo by the Gozo ferry which makes numerous trips each day. The only airport on Malta is Malta International Airport. It is built on the land formerly occupied by the RAF Luqa air base. Two further airfields at Ta' Qali and Ħal Far were operated during World War II and into the 1960s but are now