DHL has started the global distribution of life-saving vaccines, with the first batch of Pfizer doses for Israel arriving at Ben Gurion International Airport on 9 December.
Welcomed by the Prime Minister himself, Benjamin Netanyahu, a DHL Express freighter arrived in Tel Aviv from Brussels carrying initial doses of the Pfizer corona vaccine for Israel’s citizens.
“The current crisis has shown how indispensable international logistics networks are for ensuring that societies have the necessary personal protective equipment and test kits to secure their health,” said Travis Cobb, head of global network operations and aviation at DHL Express.
“Now we are embarking on the next step in our common fight against the coronavirus,” he added.
Also read: DHL Global Forwarding to launch air freight charter for bio and healthcare
DHL Global Forwarding, the freight specialist arm of Deutsche Post DHL Group, also dedicated a charter flight last week for additional supplies of vaccine doses.
“The development of a coronavirus vaccine is a silver lining and we are proud to play an active role as the most global logistics provider in bringing this silver lining to people,” stated Thomas Mack, head of global airfreight, DHL Global Forwarding.
“With our extensive logistics expertise in the life sciences & gealthcare sector paired with the commitment and passion of our people we want to play our part in making the corona pandemic history,” Mack added.
In addition to the first flights to Israel, the integrator is preparing to deliver more vaccine shipments in December and over the coming months from its operating hubs, featuring an aircraft fleet of more than 260 dedicated planes, numerous partner airlines as well as a hub and gateway network spanning more than 220 countries and territories.
The 9,000-strong company says 200,000 pallet shippers, 15 million cooling boxes and 15,000 flights will be needed across the various supply chain setups to deliver to every nook and cranny in the globe.
In recent news, DHL Supply Chain signed a deal with a German federal state to store and transport the Covid-19 vaccines. Under the contract the logistics provider will store around 2.2 million vaccine doses and about 350 pallets of inoculation equipment for the federal state of Lower Saxony at two certified locations before the last mile to the vaccination centres and hospitals across the state.
