Etihad Cargo has launched direct flights between Hanoi (HAN) and Delhi (DEL), connecting vital demand flows for the two countries, as India faces more coronavirus cases by the day.

The weekly freighter flight provides additional capacity between the two countries in Asia, with Abu Dhabi serving as a connection to a more global network.

In a separate announcement, the air cargo operator said it was granted UAE General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) approval to expand dry ice capacity for its Dreamliner and Boeing 777 flight fleet.

It can now carry up to five times more dry ice per flight, enabling it to accommodate various vaccine types, including the Pfizer, Moderna and Sputnik vaccines which currently need to be stored between -70°C and -18°C.

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“Securing GCAA approval for our dry ice carrying capabilities is an important step forward for Etihad Cargo. Not only does it heighten the carrier’s credibility in assuring product integrity, it further elevates the enabling role the airline is playing in the UAE and Abu Dhabi’s efforts to provide a greater number of vaccines across Etihad’s network,” said Andre Blech, director global cargo operations, Etihad Aviation Group.

The carrier is serving global demand for swift and secure COVID-19 vaccine shipments by leveraging its dedicated pharma and healthcare service PharmaLife, with 54 stations across its network.

The added capacity to Delhi and dry ice approval hopefully play significant as India reported the largest single-day increase in infections, on Wednesday morning, 28 April, taking the total cases to nearly 18 million.