Lufthansa Cargo and Frankfurt Airport are working on a plan to ship the Coronavirus vaccine around the globe when it becomes available.
The aviation industry has taken a massive hit since the outbreak of COVID, so news of a vaccine is a step in the right direction for the industry’s recovery.
Why Frankfurt Airport?
Frankfurt Airport is one of the major cargo hubs in Europe and as a result of this, has remained significantly busier than other airports throughout the crisis.
Frankfurt Airport has two main cargo areas, Cargo City North and Cargo City South. Whilst passenger numbers dwindled, cargo flight figures remained stable.
Head of Central Cargo Infrastructure, Max Philipp Conrady, commented:
We are closely monitoring the current research for a corona vaccine… Already during the handling of urgently needed protective equipment and partly vital pharmaceutical goods at the beginning of the year, we showed that we, as a cargo community, make an essential contribution to supplying the population.
German flagship carrier, Lufthansa, was amongst the first to repurpose passenger aircraft to keep cargo moving through the pandemic.
Lufthansa is highly skilled in the transportation of temperature-sensitive goods, essential in the moving of pharmaceuticals.
Will it take much longer to prepare?
Frankfurt Airport revealed that 12,000 square meters of temperature-controlled handling are available with access directly to the apron. With access to the apron, this means a much swifter turnaround is achievable, reducing the time that the vaccine is not in a temperature-sensitive environment.
While the airport has 12,000 sqm prepared, a further 2,000sqm is almost ready taking the total dedicated space for the vaccine transportation to 14,000sqm.
Is it the right time to prepare, or is it too soon? Let us know your thoughts on this in the comments below.
