How aviation supports communities in crisis

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Saturday 4 April 2020 00:13 AM

How aviation supports communities in crisis

When crisis hits, whether it’s a pandemic, natural or humanitarian disaster, communities need help, fast. Non-government organisations (NGOs) need to deliver aid quickly and send responders to some of the most vulnerable communities suffering the immediate aftermath of a disaster.

The aviation industry are experts in moving people and goods around the world and have a huge desire to help, but identifying those in need and coordinating responses isn’t always easy.

Step in Airlink, a non-profit, rapid-response humanitarian relief organisation that connects airlines and aviation logistics partners with pre-qualified, non-profit organisations responding to disasters and other humanitarian crises around the globe.

During the COVID-19 outbreak, they’ve been coordinating efforts to deliver cargo, medical supplies and aid to people in need.

We spoke to Andrew Williams, Director of Communications at Airlink to find out more.

Andrew Williams, Director of Communications, Airlink

Could you tell us a bit about Airlink and its work?

Airlink was originally created 10 years ago by the ISTAT Foundation, to respond to the earthquakes in Haiti.

Because of the generosity of our aviation industry sponsors, we can move relief workers and emergency supplies either cost-free or mostly free of charge. This removes a significant cost burden from our humanitarian relief partners and frees up their resources for mission-critical costs, such as medical supplies.

By pre-screening humanitarian relief organisations and having relationships with airlines and air cargo operators in place, we dramatically simplify and speed up the delivery of critical aid and expert volunteers and staff in an emergency.

Volunteers from World Central Kitchen serve food to those quarantined onboard the Diamond Princess cruise ship. United Airlines provided 2,700kg of airlift

What kind of work has Airlink been undertaking during the COVID-19 pandemic?

Airlink and its aviation partners have delivered over 18,000 lbs. of cargo (that’s the equivalent of 13 rhinoceros’) for Coronavirus-hit communities in China and Japan. We partnered with World Central Kitchen and United Airlines to deliver nearly 5,000lbs of equipment to Japan, enabling WCK teams to provide food for passengers and crew quarantined on the Diamond Princess cruise ship.

We also brought together Project Hope, MedShare and Polar Air Cargo to transport over 14,000lbs of medical supplies to Wuhan, China, which was completely overwhelmed by the outbreak.

We have been monitoring developments in countries with less-developed health systems and working with NGOs to assess future needs and delivery options for protective equipment in high-risk countries, including Afghanistan, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Iraq, Syria, and Yemen, and other areas where infection prevention and control programmes are needed.

With so many countries putting social distancing or travel advisories in place, one of our roles has been to get expert volunteers and NGO teams back home, as humanitarian and response programs shut down prematurely.

2019 by numbers

Humanitarian responses

Humanitarian aid organisations assisted

$1,402,502

Total value of flights provided

1,292

Responders transported

197,993lb

Humanitarian aid delivered

Airline and logistics partners activated

What has been the greatest challenge?

The challenges have come in two distinct phases. Initially, the issue was the supply chain. At the start of the year we had plenty of organisations that wanted to take medical equipment to China and the airline and air cargo industries were offering their help. But, we had a fundamental lack of supplies of essential medical equipment, particularly personal protective equipment (PPE).

The second phase has been about the scarcity of airlift (the ability to transport supplies by aircraft in an emergency). Traditional commercial carriers have had to cut flights across the board due to low demand for passenger travel. The knock-on effect is that with belly space capacity for cargo at a historic low, demand for airfreight is currently four to five times the available supply.

“The team at Airlink are immensely proud to be a part of the aviation family. The generosity of the people and companies of this dynamic sector never stops being amazing. Even in the midst of the economic tumult caused by COVID-19, companies are still offering up airlift for humanitarian missions."

“Our thoughts are with everybody in the aviation sector subjected to multiple stresses resulting from the pandemic. We also know that because of the ingenuity, creativity and professionalism of those working across the aviation sector, that when all this over the sector will bounce back.”

How can people help?

In terms of COVID-19, we ask that people follow the advice to stay safe by washing their hands, practicing social distancing and avoiding all non-essential travel.

Beyond that important advice, Airlink is starting a new initiative called AviationC.A.R.E.S. (Co-ordinated Air Response for Emergency Supplies). The initiative has multiple elements, including organising critical airlift for NGOs and promoting the activities and generosity of the sector during the current pandemic.

On Airlift, Airlink’s AviationC.A.R.E.S initiative aims to build a coalition of parties from the aviation sector, NGO sector, and funders, to co-ordinate an airlift response to tackle COVID-19 over the next nine months, in particular, hard-hit communities with less-developed health systems.

With the help of Airlink and British Airways, DART International UK clears the way for communities recovering from Hurricane Dorian.

At the moment, air freight demand far outstrips supply and costs are high. We aim to organise the NGO sector and source cargo aircraft to deliver lower-cost airlift for NGOs. This concept of the ‘Air Bridge’ was something we did during the Ebola crisis in 2014-15 when we were able to move over 1.3 million lbs. of cargo for 48 humanitarian organisations, because of our capacity to organise and convene critical participants across multiple sectors.

We’re asking people working within the aviation sector to begin to use the hashtag #AviationCARES when you engage on social media with any content that casts a positive light on the aviation sector, its people and activities during the COVID-19 crisis. The sector continues to show its generosity, which is just amazing and makes a real difference to people’s lives.