- GlobalMedic sends medical supplies, trauma dressings and
wound care supplies destined for Lviv, Ukraine
MONTREAL, March 9, 2022 /PRNewswire/ - An Air
Canada-operated humanitarian special cargo flight on behalf of
Airlink and other aid organizations departed Toronto Pearson
International Airport with a final destination of Warsaw, Poland on Wednesday, March 9. Through a partnership between
Air Canada, disaster logistics non-profit Airlink, relief
organization Project C.U.R.E., and freight forwarder Flexport,
medical supplies and hospital beds, humanitarian and medical
supplies were loaded onboard the Air Canada Boeing 787-9
Dreamliner. Medical and trauma supplies destined for a Ukrainian
hospital provided by Canadian disaster relief and life-saving
humanitarian aid organization GlobalMedic were also boarded.
After the flight arrives in Poland, Project C.U.R.E. will manage the
distribution of supplies to hospitals treating Ukrainian civilians
injured during the war, expanding the capacity of hospitals in
border regions to provide care. More than two million people
throughout Ukraine have now fled
their homes after the invasion seeking safety in neighbouring
countries. Primary care has been identified by aid agencies as one
of the most pressing needs.
"Our hearts are with the Ukrainian people in need - all of us
have seen the crisis they are facing. We know from our aid partners
the critical requirement for much needed medical and humanitarian
supplies and our global partner Airlink reached out to us to help
transport these vital items quickly. Importantly, both Airlink and
GlobalMedic have the infrastructure and teams on the ground to
ensure that the shipments will get to their destinations right
after our flight arrives. We are proud of our employees who have
stepped up to help organize the complex logistics, handle and
operate this special flight so quickly," said Jason Berry, Vice President, Cargo at Air
Canada.
"This shipment will make a material impact on the lives of
Ukrainians fleeing the conflict and support the communities hosting
them," said Steve Smith, Airlink
President and CEO. "Getting the shipment to Poland on behalf of our NGO partner Project
C.U.R.E. meant overcoming a challenging logistical environment, but
I'm thrilled we could do it with assistance from our long-time
friends and supporters Air Canada. This is the first of many cargo
movements Airlink will carry out in support of Ukrainian
refugees."
"Project C.U.R.E. has an extensive history of working with our
partners in Ukraine, and we remain
committed to serving the people of Ukraine until the ravages of this war have
been erased," said Dr. Douglas
Jackson, President and CEO of Project C.U.R.E. "This first
shipment of emergency medical supplies and equipment is just one of
many to come. People all over the world are responding to this
need, and they are cheering on our work from all corners of the
globe. We are incredibly grateful to our partners at Airlink and
Air Canada for making this a reality – together we are saving lives
and delivering health and hope to the people of Ukraine."
"We are grateful to our friends at Airlink and Air Canada for
giving us air cargo space to ship essential medicines and trauma
supplies. The aid will land in Warsaw where our partners will grab them and
truck them to a hospital in Lviv. Essential medicines are needed by
patients fleeing the fighting who could not bring their
prescription medicines with them and are facing shortages in local
pharmacies. Trauma supplies especially dressings are needed to
treat victims of this war," said Rahul
Singh, Executive Director at GlobalMedic.
Earlier this week, medical supplies were picked up from the
Project C.U.R.E. warehouse in Illinois, transported to Chicago O'Hare
airport and tendered to Air Canada by Flexport. Air Canada Cargo
subsequently transported the supplies to its Cargo facility at
Toronto Pearson International Airport.
Non-profit disaster logistics expert Airlink exists to help
remove the cost of air transportation as a barrier to NGOs
responding to disasters and other humanitarian crises. It was able
to use its long-term partnership with Air Canada, and support from
donors, to secure the cargo-only flight making the delivery of this
shipment possible. Airlink also has transported 42 relief workers
for 11 non-profit organizations providing medical care, food,
mental health counseling, clean water, and other essentials to
Ukrainian refugees.
Air Canada has worked together
with Airlink and GlobalMedic to transport responders and aid on a
number of missions, most recently in response to British Columbia's devastating wildfires and
floods.
About Air Canada
Air Canada is Canada's largest domestic and international
airline, the country's flag carrier and a founding member of
Star Alliance, the world's most
comprehensive air transportation network. Air Canada is the only international network
carrier in North America to
receive a Four-Star ranking from the independent U.K. research firm
Skytrax, which in 2021 also named Air Canada as having the Best
Airline Staff in North America,
Best Airline Staff in Canada, Best
Business Class Lounge in North
America, as well as an Excellence award for its handling of
COVID-19. Also in 2021, Air Canada was named Global Traveler's Best
Airline in North America for the
third straight year. In January 2021,
Air Canada received APEX's Diamond Status Certification for the Air
Canada CleanCare+ biosafety program for managing COVID-19, the only
airline in Canada to attain the
highest APEX ranking. Air Canada
has also committed to a net zero emissions goal from all global
operations by 2050. For more information, please visit:
aircanada.com/media, follow Air Canada on Twitter and
LinkedIn, and join Air Canada on Facebook.
About Airlink
Airlink is a global humanitarian
organization delivering critical aid to communities in crisis by
providing airlift and logistical solutions to nonprofit partners,
changing the way the humanitarian community responds to disasters
around the world. Airlink exists to help remove the cost of air
transportation as a barrier to NGOs responding to disasters and
other humanitarian crises. Its network includes more than 130 aid
organizations and 50 commercial and charter airlines. Since its
inception in 2010, Airlink has flown more than 8,000 relief workers
and transported nearly 5,000,000 pounds of humanitarian cargo. In
2021 the humanitarian aid Airlink delivered assisted 7.8 million
people. For more information, please visit www.airlinkflight.org.
Follow Airlink on Facebook and Twitter.
About Project Cure
Project C.U.R.E. was founded in
1987 to address the staggering shortage of medical resources around
the world. Since our humble beginnings in a garage in Colorado, Project C.U.R.E. has become the
world's largest distributor of donated medical supplies, equipment,
and services to doctors and nurses serving the sick and dying in
more than 135 countries. Each week Project C.U.R.E. delivers
approximately three to five semitruck-sized ocean containers packed
with the medical equipment and supplies desperately needed to save
lives in hospitals and clinics in resource-limited countries.
Project C.U.R.E. is supported by over 30,000 volunteers annually
and operates distribution warehouses in seven U.S. cities. For more
information, visit: www.projectcure.org.
Internet:
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SOURCE Air Canada