India's air cargo firms, airports plan smooth vaccine transport

WAITING for the arrival of the Covid vaccine, India's air cargo operators and airports plan to ensure an overall smooth transport of vaccines, reports the Press Trust of India.

The Indian government is working with Moderna, Pfizer, Serum Institute of India, Bharat Biotech, and Zydus Cadila over the progress of the clinical trials for each vaccine.



Significant Indian Airports are providing flexible slots and separate temperature-controlled zones, while air cargo operators hope to run multiple flights to transport the vaccine safely in India early next year.



Meanwhile, the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) in Mumbai is the largest pharma gateway in the country and will provide flexible slot allocation for ad hoc freighter operations for transportation of the vaccines.



'We have eight pharma-grade conditioning rooms at eight strategic locations like Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Pune, Kolkata, Delhi, Bangalore, Pune. These rooms are in close proximity to our Blue Dart aviation station which increases our turnaround time and will aid in speedy delivery,' said the Blue Dart air cargo operator.



Many feel the transportation of the vaccines for as large of a country as India will be a massive undertaking.



Serum Insitute of India's CEO Adar Poonawalla said the Oxford vaccine should be available for healthcare workers and elderly people by February 2021 and for the general public by April.


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