Pallets holding lifesaving COVID-19 supplies loaded by Airmen from the 60th Aerial Port Squadron sit on a C-5M Super Galaxy outbound to India. Credit: U.S. Air Force photo by Nicholas Pilch.

The US Air Force’s (USAF) 60th Air Mobility Wing (AMW) at Travis Air Force Base (AFB) is supporting the delivery of critical Covid-19 medical supplies to India.

India is fighting the recent outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic. As on 30 April, India added a record 386,452 coronavirus cases in a day, according to government data.

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The US Government expects to provide more than $100m in medical supplies assistance to India.

The donation is being made through the US Agency for International Development (USAID) with 60th AMW airmen responsible for delivery.

On 28 April, a C-5M Super Galaxy and a C-17 Globemaster III left Travis AFB with initial shipments of over $100m in medical supplies.

60th Aerial Port Squadron civilian operations officer John Buchanan said: “This is what my troops train for: to represent the United States of America in a humanitarian crisis or a national defence contingency.”

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The USAF noted that the two aircraft contained multiple pallets of oxygen cylinders and regulators, N95 masks and Covid-19 rapid diagnostic test kits.

The total shipment includes oxygen cylinders, oxygen concentrators, personnel protective equipment, oxygen generation units, rapid diagnostic tests and therapeutics, as well as vaccine manufacturing supplies.

Buchanan added: “Right now, this is the number one mission for Travis. Thousands and thousands of people need help. It’s about the bigger picture.”

In a separate development, the Indian Air Force’s (IAF) C-17 aircraft airlifted four cryogenic oxygen containers from Frankfurt in Germany to Hindon airbase near Delhi, on 2 May.

Besides this, 450 oxygen cylinders from UK’s Brize Norton were also airlifted to the Chennai airbase in Tamil Nadu.

The IAF is continuing to support Covid-19 relief efforts by conducting sorties to ferry supplies within the country and abroad.

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