Turkish Cargo flies UNICEF-supplied COVID-19 vaccines

Turkish Cargo, a subsidiary of national flag carrier Turkish Airlines (THY), has carried coronavirus vaccines and other medical equipment supplied by UNICEF across the world.

“As the air cargo brand that utilizes the widest flight network of the world, Turkish Cargo shoulders an important mission in the fight against the pandemic,” it said in a press release on Saturday.

The firm has carried 1.7 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines, which were procured from India by UNICEF, from India's Mumbai to Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

It also carried hundreds of thousands of syringes from Barcelona to Tunis and COVID-19 vaccines from Amsterdam to Kyiv, Tbilisi and Amman on UNICEF's behalf.

Earlier the firm transported China’s Sinovac COVID-19 vaccines to various countries globally.

The freighter was named Europe’s best air cargo brand at the 2020 Air Cargo News Awards in November.

During the pandemic, the brand delivered everything from food and aid materials to medicine, masks and medical equipment worldwide, maintaining operations relentlessly in order not to disrupt the global pharmaceutical supply chain.

The flag carrier subsidiary has transported one out of every 20 air cargo delivered around the world.

Having the world’s largest direct cargo plane network, Turkish Cargo reaches more than 300 destinations, 95 of which are direct cargo.

The company aims to become one of the top five air cargo brands by 2023.

Turkish Airlines has the capacity to carry up to 40 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines daily, Turhan Özen, deputy general manager responsible for cargo at the carrier, said last month.