19 May 2020

Covid-19: EATC showcases its pandemic response

The European Air Transport Command (EATC) has showcased its response to date to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, highlighting the contribution of the seven participating nations and more than 170 aircraft to the international relief effort.

The A400M has been instrumental in the EATC’s ongoing response to the coronavirus pandemic, ferrying emergency medical equipment and personnel, and providing aero medical evacuation services for the seven command nations of Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and Spain.

A factsheet released by the EATC on 19 May noted some key statistics in the response from the command, which is headquartered at Eindhoven Airbase in the Netherlands and encompasses Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and Spain in a collaborative pooling arrangement across the domains of air transport (AT), air-to-air refuelling (AAR), and aero medical evacuation (medevac).

Specifically, the command has flown over 1,700 hours in more than 120 missions since 30 January. These sorties have resulted in more than 230,000 kg of urgent medical supplies being delivered, as well as over 1,500 military personnel and 1,600 civilian passengers repatriated to their home countries.

Furthermore, 82 patients have been medically evacuated. Previously, the EATC had noted that between 27 March and 3 April, it had commanded five intensive-care missions by German A310 and A400M aircraft taking Italian and French patients from Bergamo and Strasbourg to German hospitals, for instance.

Established on 1 September 2010 between France, Germany, and the Benelux countries (Spain and Italy joined in 2014), the EATC uses its in-house Management of European Air Transport (MEAT) tool to exchange equivalent flight hours (EFHs) between the member countries under the Air Transport & Air-to-Air Refuelling and other Exchanges of Services (ATARES) scheme.

The European Air Transport Command (EATC) has showcased its response to date to the ongoing coronavi...

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