United Airlines starts shipping Covid-19 vaccine
United Airlines has started transporting the first vaccine shipments to the US.
The Pfizer- BioNTech vaccine candidate still hasn’t been approved by the Food and Drug Administration, although it is allowed to be stockpiled ahead of an approval.
Pfizer has applied for emergency use authorization under the government’s expedited ‘Operation Warp Speed’ program
According to a unnamed member of the United Airlines Covid Vaccine Readiness Task Team, charter flights are shipping the vaccine out of a production facility in Belgium to the US.
It started the flights last Friday, The Wall Street Journal reported.
The airline hasn’t officially confirmed the flights but said it ‘supports a vaccine distribution effort on a global scale.’
The FAA seemed to confirm it by saying it is ‘supporting the first mass air shipment of a vaccine.’
The FAA has permitted United to carry 15,000 pounds of dry ice per flight which is five times more than is normally allowed.
This is because the vaccine needs to be stored in extremely cold temperatures of minus 70 degrees Celsius.
A mass inoculation program is likely to roll out in late December.
"This will be the largest and most complex logistical exercise ever. The world is counting on us," Alexandre de Juniac, IATA chief, said of the role airlines will play in getting the vaccines to every corner of the world.
Written by Ray Montgomery, US Editor
TravelMole Editorial Team
Editor for TravelMole North America and Asia pacific regions. Ray is a highly experienced (15+ years) skilled journalist and editor predominantly in travel, hospitality and lifestyle working with a huge number of major market-leading brands. He has also cover in-depth news, interviews and features in general business, finance, tech and geopolitical issues for a select few major news outlets and publishers.
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