More than 1 billion doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have been shipped by Emirates SkyCargo.
The milestone was reached during the last 18 months, with the first shipment scheduled for October 2020.
In a statement, Emirates reported that more than 4,200 tonnes of COVID-19 vaccinations, or about 1 billion doses, had been transported on more than 2,000 Emirates flights to over 80 destinations.
Nearly two-thirds of the 1 billion doses were delivered to developing countries, according to the airline.
Emirates said in October 2020 that it would designate a GDP-certified airside hub to ship the COVID-19 vaccination. During the same month, Emirates’ cargo division, in collaboration with its logistics partners, delivered testing supplies of COVID-19 vaccines through Dubai.
Emirates SkyCargo had already flown over 50 million doses of the vaccine by April 2021.
The air cargo carrier enhanced its pharmaceutical cold chain infrastructure at Dubai International Airport in June 2021, allowing it to store an additional 60-90 million vaccine doses at the same time.
“From the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, Emirates SkyCargo has been focused on supporting global communities in their recovery from the devastating effects of the virus and we have prioritized assistance to developing countries,” Emirates divisional senior vice president, cargo Nabil Sultan said.
“The strategic location of our Dubai hub combined with the strengths of our modern fleet of widebody aircraft, our purpose-built facilities, and capabilities in moving temperature-sensitive pharmaceuticals allowed us to transport COVID-19 vaccines securely, reliably, and rapidly from one corner of the globe to another. Ahead of World Health Day, we’re incredibly proud of our global Emirates SkyCargo team who have pulled out all stops during the pandemic to keep supply chains for essential goods like vaccines up and running,” Sultan added.
