Cathay Pacific Cargo has made a further contribution to pandemic relief efforts. The Americas team recently helped with two relief efforts for India and Bangladesh, to help contend with the spike in cases in the region.
The first of these was in May, with an airlift of 300,000 COVID-19 testing kits for India: a gift from the State of Oregon. The shipment departed Portland for Mumbai via Hong Kong on one of Cathay Pacific Cargo’s Boeing 747 freighters.
‘It’s simply devastating what is happening in India as COVID-19 variants exact an enormous toll on human lives,’ said Oregon Governor Kate Brown. ‘In Oregon, we step up to help those in need by offering any help we can give.’
Cathay Pacific Cargo, forwarder Expeditors and logistics company Davis Trucking partnered with the Oregon Health Authority and Department of Administrative Services, offering their services free of charge for the shipment.
Port of Portland Chief Trade and Equitable Development Officer Keith Leavitt added: ‘We’re so grateful to the state, Cathay Pacific and the other local partners that stepped up to make this flight happen.’
Last year, Cathay Pacific Cargo had adjusted its air cargo operations to ship essential COVID-19 supplies to Oregon, carrying one million surgical masks into the state when they were urgently needed by frontline healthcare workers.
The Portland freighter flight was followed by a shipment this month from Toronto bound for Dhaka. Working with Airlink, Cathay Pacific Cargo carried 5,000 face shields across two pallets for distribution to healthcare workers providing medical care to Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh.
‘Cathay Pacific is proud to work with our partners in the Americas in the global fight against COVID-19,’ said Fred Ruggiero, Cathay Pacific Vice-President Cargo, Americas. ‘We have prioritised humanitarian relief efforts over the past year, delivering more than 100 tons of much-needed humanitarian and medical supplies to India alone. I would like to thank our teams in the Americas and our local partners for making these shipments possible.’