Saudi Press

Saudi Arabia and the world
Thursday, Oct 02, 2025

Airlines preparing to transport coronavirus vaccines face 'hugely complex logistical challenges'

Airlines preparing to transport coronavirus vaccines face 'hugely complex logistical challenges'

'We must be prepared for when a vaccine is ready,' says CEO of International Air Transport Association

The airline industry is readying its fleet to help deliver shipments of the forthcoming COVID-19 vaccines pending approval from health officials.

American Airlines, United and Lufthansa are some of the carriers that have since shared plans to fly the vaccines to their designated destinations on cargo flights, amid mounting logistical challenges for the safe transport and handling of those vaccines.

American Airlines on Monday became the latest carrier to reveal details of test operations designed to transport vaccines from Miami to South America, which began in mid-November.

“The trial flights simulate the conditions required for the COVID-19 vaccine to stress test the thermal packaging and operational handling process that will ultimately ensure it remains stable as it moves across the globe,” wrote the airline in a news release on Monday.

This past Friday, United Airlines had also delivered shipments of the Pfizer vaccine candidate to multiple destinations, with the intention of having them available at distribution centers as soon as Food & Drug Administration (FDA) approval is granted, per The Wall Street Journal. The airline was also given permission to transport five times more dry ice than is normally allowed by the FAA, in order to ensure the vaccines are stored at the correct temperature.

In a statement to Fox News, Delta Air Lines confirmed that the carrier had been preparing for the cold shipment of vaccines since "earlier in the summer," and is currently "in discussions with numerous government and industry stakeholders to understand the supply chain requirements for the shipment of COVID-19 vaccines across the globe."

Southwest, too, has also reportedly been looking to use its cargo operation to help in any way it can, per King 5 News.

“Delivering billions of doses of a vaccine that must be transported and stored in a deep-frozen state to the entire world efficiently will involve hugely complex logistical challenges across the supply chain,” said Alexandre de Juniac, the CEO of the International Air Transport Association (IATA), in a press release issued in November.

“While the immediate challenge is the implementation of COVID-19 testing measures to re-open borders without quarantine, we must be prepared for when a vaccine is ready.”

The IATA, which counts around 290 of the world’s carriers as members, had also identified a number of other challenges for distributing the vaccine, including concerns over the refrigeration capacity of distribution facilities on the delivering end of the shipments, as well the availability of air-connectivity channels across international borders and the requirement to keep shipments secure from “tampering and theft.”

Other challenges include the transportation of vaccines in cargo areas of aircraft that are not primarily designed for the transport of cargo. (Many major commercial airlines move cargo in the unused areas of its passenger cargo space.) Many of the larger planes that usually operate internationally had been grounded amid the pandemic, too.

Across the globe, larger airline operations, such as those represented by the Lufthansa Group, Air France-KLM and Korean Air, have been readying their freight operations to carry the vaccines, some for months now.


“It’s going to be a major logistics challenge,” Air France cargo chief Christophe Boucher said, per Reuters.

As noted by American Airlines, however, tasks such as this are not completely “new” to the industry, as airlines have stepped up to deliver personal protective equipment and testing equipment since the beginning of the pandemic.

“Despite the significant challenges the airline industry is facing, we’re working night and day to put our greatest strengths to use during this time of need — our network, our aircraft and our incredible team,” said Jessica Tyler, the president of American Airlines’ cargo operations.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Saudi Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
Nvidia and Abu Dhabi’s TII Launch First AI-&-Robotics Lab in the Middle East
UK, Canada, and Australia Officially Recognise Palestine in Historic Shift
New Eye Drops Show Promise in Replacing Reading Glasses for Presbyopia
Dubai Property Boom Shows Strain as Flippers Get Buyer’s Remorse
Top AI Researchers Are Heading Back to China as U.S. Struggles to Keep Pace
JWST Data Brings TRAPPIST-1e Closer to Earth-Like Habitability
UAE-US Stargate Project Poised to Make Abu Dhabi a Global AI Powerhouse
Trump and Starmer Clash Over UK Recognition of Palestinian State Amid State Visit
Saudi Arabia cracks down on music ‘lounges’ after conservative backlash
Saudi Arabia Signs ‘Strategic Mutual Defence’ Pact with Pakistan, Marking First Arab State to Gain Indirect Access to Nuclear Strike Capabilities in the Region
Sam Altman sells the 'Wedding Estate' in Hawaii for 49 million dollars
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
Kuwait opens bidding for construction of three cities to ease housing crunch.
This Week in AI: Meta’s Superintelligence Push, xAI’s Ten Billion-Dollar Raise, Genesis AI’s Robotics Ambitions, Microsoft Restructuring, Amazon’s Million-Robot Milestone, and Google’s AlphaGenome Update
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
Qatari prime minister says Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Big Oil Slashes Jobs and Investments Amid Prolonged Low Crude Prices
Social Media Access Curtailed in Turkey After CHP Calls for Rallies Following Police Blockade of Istanbul Headquarters
Did the Houthis disrupt the internet in the Middle East? Submarine cables cut in the Red Sea
Gold Could Reach Nearly $5,000 if Fed Independence Is Undermined, Goldman Sachs Warns
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
Trump Administration Advances Plans to Rebrand Pentagon as Department of War Instead of the Fake Term Department of Defense
Tether Expands into Gold Sector with Profit-Driven Diversification
Trump’s New War – and the ‘Drug Tyrant’ Fearing Invasion: ‘1,200 Missiles Aimed at Us’
At the Parade in China: Laser Weapons, 'Eagle Strike,' and a Missile Capable of 'Striking Anywhere in the World'
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
Israeli Airstrike in Yemen Kills Houthi Prime Minister
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Iran Faces Escalating Water Crisis as Protests Spread
More Than Half a Million Evacuated as Typhoon Kajiki Heads for Vietnam
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Miles Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Cristiano Ronaldo Makes Surprise Stop at New Hong Kong Museum
Zelenskyy to Visit Washington after Trump–Putin Summit Yields No Agreement
×