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Coronavirus – All the news: While waiting for the vaccine to deal with the Covid-19 pandemic, air carriers already seem to be preparing for the “mission of the century”, as they will be called upon to transport large quantities from production lines to various corners of the Earth in undefined dates. .
The accounting support for this project is already underway and, as Dimitris Zopounidis, a researcher in aviation management and administration, graduated from the Department of Business Administration and Management, explains to the APE-MPE radio station “Agency 104.9 FM” “The airlines are called to help in this colossal transport company, in a coordinated way, worldwide.” In particular, as he explains, “the World Aviation Association (IATA) has asked governments to initiate initial plans for the air transport of the vaccine in cooperation with interested airlines.”
Vaccine transfer, which is expected to provide at the same time an important stimulate the injection into the finances of companies in the sector, It is, however, a “much more complicated situation than conventional freight transport”.
An unprecedented air transport business
A large part of the vaccines, according to Mr. Zopounidis, must be transported by air. “IATA emphasizes that delivering a dose of the vaccine to 7.8 billion people worldwide will require a minimum of 8,000 Boeing 747 aircraft,” notes IATA Executive Director Alexander De Juniac. He said that the safe supply of Covid-19 vaccines would be the “mission of the century” for the global air cargo industry. He stressed that this will not happen without careful planning and that the time to do so is now. He urged governments to take the initiative to facilitate cooperation along the supply chain, so that facilities, security arrangements and border procedures are ready for the huge and complex task that will follow. “
Sensitive and valuable cargo
According to Mr. Zopounidis, not all aircraft are suitable for the transport of vaccines as “special temperatures of 2 to 8 degrees Celsius are required, as well as many freezing procedures”, while it requires beyond technical / technological effort and coordinated from many agencies. globally with multiple simultaneous actions, since for the transport of vaccines it is necessary to “prepare stagnant aircraft due to the low demand for travel and the necessary modifications must be made to transport the vaccine load under adequate conditions.” In addition, create the appropriate facilities, with the appropriate vaccine maintenance temperatures.
“The airlines that wish to participate in this project must adjust their commercial work in a timely manner to operate without problems. Each country will be able to know the exact delivery times as well as the way in which each airline will deliver the cargo in order to properly configure the facilities where the project will take place. In addition, there must be staff available who are properly trained to handle time- and temperature-sensitive vaccines, “explains Mr. Zopounidis.
Ensuring the speed of the vaccine delivery process is critical. This involves effective cooperation with health and customs authorities to ensure timely approvals, adequate security measures, customs handling and clearance, but this could be a particular challenge as, as part of COVID-19 response measures, many Governments have implemented measures that actually increase cargo handling times.
Race
According to him, there are already airlines, airports and aviation organizations that have already started preparations. “Korean Airlines has already created a working group to store, transport and distribute vaccines, establish cold storage facilities, warehouses for basic equipment and take the necessary security measures to achieve the great goal.” American United Cargo promised to help transport the special temperature-controlled containers, already carrying out the first test flights for this purpose, and the Russian cargo airline Airbridge Cargo will transport logistics equipment for the transport of vaccines and is already operating flights. test. in August, “says Mr. Zopounidis.
According to him, Emirates Sky Cargo, the world’s largest cargo airline, will also assist in its readiness to handle the logistical complexities of distributing the potential COVID-19 vaccine, creating the world’s first dedicated cargo center for the vaccine in Dubai.
“The Emirates Sky Cargo Vaccine Center at Dubai World Central Airport (DWC) will be the world’s largest COVID-19 vaccine facility. The Emirates Cargo Terminal located at DWC will serve as a special hub for storage and distribution of the vaccine by country. “The transportation department of its parent company, in fact, has also established a special rapid response team to coordinate requests from the various agencies involved in the international vaccine distribution system and to achieve the maximum efficiency in vaccine delivery, “said Zopounidis.
This facility has more than 4,000 square meters. Exclusive temperature-controlled drug storage area, allowing for large-scale storage and distribution of potential COVID-19 vaccines. In total, the facility is estimated to hold approximately 10 million vaccine vials in a temperature range of 2 to 8 degrees Celsius at any one time, meeting all of the above conditions! The state-of-the-art infrastructure is also complemented by one of the world’s largest refrigerated truck fleets, helping to protect temperature-sensitive cargo as it passes between the aircraft and the cargo terminal, the company said in a statement.
Europe and its own “choreography” of vaccine transfer processes
The fever of preparation, however, is also prevalent in the Old Continent. The aviation management researcher explains that in Europe, European Air Transport has launched five weekly flights from Brussels Airport (BRU), which is “a major European hub for the transport of temperature-sensitive drugs.” At the same time, Lufthansa Cargo and Frankfurt Airport (FRA), which “already has 12,000 square meters of temperature-controlled capacity and another 2,000 square meters in preparation”, are working together to prepare for the vaccine shipment.
Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport, Europe’s fifth-busiest airport, has created its own working group to design vaccine delivery assistance procedures, and Finnair Cargo, Finland’s national airline, has announced its intention to assist in the project, stating your disposition. The cargo carrier, in fact, “suggests that speed of delivery is a critical requirement for transporting the vaccine and with the company’s cargo center, located in northern Europe, it flies the shortest route to all. major cities in Asia “. notes Mr. Zopounidis.
The important “trump card” in this case is the location of Finnair Cargo’s base at Finland’s Vaanta International Airport, a location that the company says could be vital in ensuring vaccines reach their destination. in the schedules that are established.
Without anything official, Zopounidis estimates that in our country, too, “it will provide catalytic assistance when requested by Aegean Airlines, since it had assisted in the first wave of the pandemic, transporting medical equipment from China and Asia to Hellas.”
Vaccine “Operation Barbarossa” Must Succeed
“In conclusion, the transportation of vaccines and drugs is a great challenge for global air transport. It requires proper and rational organization, coordinated actions and unprecedented coordination of organizations, agencies and industry executives to be successful.” is that airlines and their top executives, however, may see it as an opportunity in the midst of a serious health crisis that has “cut” their revenues and many of them have led them to a dead end, “concludes Mr. Zopounidis, who estimates that the race has already begun.
Interest in global aviation vaccines is expected to intensify in the next time period, while in any event solutions will be found by experts in the field and “once again, the aviation industry will play a role. catalyst in a period of crisis in public health “.
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