May 2022 Partner Update: Airlink’s April Operations
- Humanitarian Networks and Partnerships Week (HNPW): Airlink will be participating in the session “Evolution of Humanitarian Logistics” on May 17 at 12:00 PM UTC. Register here.
- Doctors and Nurses of IsraAID’s Medical Team Share Their Experiences: Read more about this impactful project in Airlink’s newest blog post.
- Airlink Partners with Air Canada on Second Special Humanitarian Flight to Support Ukrainian Refugees: With support from Flexport.org, the flight transported 6,400 Family Emergency Kits.
Response: Philippines – Tropical Storm Megi
Airlink supported the deployment of GlobalMedic’s Rapid Response Team to the Tacloban and Iloilo regions of the Philippines. Tropical Storm Megi and the subsequent landslides and floods left thousands of people with no access to food, drinking water, and other necessities. The team implemented large scale water purification units that will be used as a point of source community based water purification tool to allow access to clean drinking water.
Recovery: Philippines – Super Typhoon Rai
Following their work in the Philippines earlier this year, IsraAID is continuing their protection and WASH programs on the islands of Palawan and Negros. Airlink coordinated flights for IsraAID’s team who is working on capacity building activities for teachers and social workers in indigenous communities, promoting hygiene and safe drinking water initiatives, and establishing water filtration systems and child friendly spaces.
Response: Ukraine – War and Refugee Crisis
The war in Ukraine has resulted in a devastating humanitarian crisis. By the end of April, an estimated 7.1 million Ukrainian refugees fled to neighboring countries, and an additional 6.5 million people are internally displaced within Ukraine. Airlink has stood up a robust response to meet the needs of those affected by the conflict, thanks to the assistance of our partners at Aeromexico, Air Canada, American Airlines, Amerijet, British Airways, Flexport.org, SEKO Logistics, United Airlines, and Virgin Atlantic.
In April, Airlink transported 106 tons of humanitarian cargo over five shipments and one charter flight, of medical supplies, hospital equipment, family emergency kits, and items for children. In addition, Airlink has supported flights for over 250 responders to date. Those deployed include doctors, nurses, psychologists, fuel assessment experts, telecommunication experts, logistics specialists, and team leaders.
- Airlink’s NGO partners ADRA International, GlobalMedic, IsraAID, and CORE continue their programs providing food, water, hygiene items, first aid kits, and other NFIs to Ukrainian refugees. Coordinating with local partners, these organizations have focused on providing refugee and logistical support in Poland, Slovakia, Romania, and Moldova.
- Gaps in healthcare access continue to be a major concern for Ukrainian refugees and IDPs. Airlink is proud to continue supporting flights for medical teams with Global Outreach Doctors, Global Response Management, Hands on Global, Mobile Medics International, Empact Northwest, Disaster Tech Lab, and International Medical Relief. Medical volunteers are providing care and expertise in trauma medicine, pediatrics, maternal and reproductive health, pharmaceutical delivery, and mental health and psychosocial support.
- Airlink continued to support RE:ACT UK’s team, providing logistical and planning support to active supply chains in the region to meet the humanitarian needs of internally displaced persons in Ukraine. The team has been able to reach IDPs and other beneficiaries at 30 locations with 80 pallets of food, water, sanitation, hygiene, and other NFIs.
- Access to safe drinking water continues to be a concern for refugee and internally displaced populations. Airlink supported flights for additional members of the Waves for Water team who are setting up water filtration systems that will provide clean water to up to 25,000 people.
- In addition to personnel support, Airlink is supporting cargo movements that strengthen the capacity of healthcare systems to support refugees and impacted civilians. Airlink coordinated a charter flight to move family emergency kits for our partners at GlobalMedic. Five additional shipments carrying requested medical and surgical supplies for our partners at Convoy of Hope, Project C.U.R.E., World Hope International, and International Ministry of Charity Emmanuel (IMOCE) reached healthcare facilities serving impacted families in Poland, Moldova, and Ukraine.
- IMOCE has been working with the Ukrainian Red Cross to distribute medical supplies, baby items, and hygiene kits to 2,000 displaced Ukrainians. Airlink supported shipments on behalf of IMOCE will be directed towards an orphanage for children with disabilities in the city Znamenka, Kirovograd.
Airlink will continue to support refugee programs and response efforts to Ukraine for as long as airlift and logistics is needed by its nonprofit partners.
Response: Mexico – Central America Migrant Crises
Cities along the U.S.-Mexico border have continued to be receiving sites for migrants being sent back from the U.S. due to Title 42. Airlink’s partners Global Response Management and Global Disaster Response and Humanitarian Action are working to provide much needed medical care including primary, chronic health, psychosocial, OB, and pediatric care to migrants along the border. Medical volunteers staff clinics in some of the largest migrant camps in Matamoros and Reynosa, Mexico.
Preparedness: Dominican Republic – Disaster Preparedness Program
The frequency of natural disasters including hurricanes and earthquakes in the Caribbean is increasing due to climate change. With support from United Airlines, Airlink coordinated travel for a volunteer engineer from Engineers Without Borders USA to the Dominican Republic. The volunteer completed the final inspection of construction for a clinic in Santo Domingo that will help the community protect public safety, health, and livelihoods in the aftermath of natural disasters.
Response: California, USA – Wildfires
As wildfires in the United States reach an all time high, Airlink is supporting partners’ initiatives to mitigate and respond to wildfires. All Hands and Hearts’ California Wildfire Relief Program in California is focused on disaster mitigation activities to increase the resilience of a community to a wildfire. In partnership with Southwest Airlines and United Airlines, 12 volunteers traveled to Paradise, California to put their chainsaw skills at work to buffer communities from fires on a house-by-house basis.
Recovery: Tornado Recovery – Kentucky and Tennessee, USA
Airlink continues supporting partners’ ongoing recovery efforts in Kentucky and Tennessee following the destructive tornadoes last year. In partnership with Southwest Airlines, Airlink supported flights for ToolBank and Disaster Services Corporation, SVDP – USA as they continued their work on home repair and long term recovery.
Recovery: British Columbia Floods Recovery – British Columbia, CA
In April, Team Rubicon Canada was able to restart their operation in Merritt, B.C. Greyshirts were able to return to the area to continue providing mucking and gutting services, debris removal, and expedient home repair to families impacted by last November’s devastating floods. With support from the Air Canada Foundation, Airlink coordinated flights for four additional waves of volunteers.
Response: Malawi – COVID-19 response
Airlink supported a shipment on behalf of Build Health International (BHI) with supplies to repair a broken PSA oxygen plant in Malawi. This piece of equipment is critical for the hospital’s ability to serve its 300 bed facility, especially as oxygen demands spike during the COVID-19 pandemic. The cargo will provide critical replacement parts and materials from the PSA plant’s original manufacturer located in India.
Preparedness: Ghana – Disaster Preparedness
With support from United Airlines, Airlink coordinated flights for NetHope’s team to launch its disaster preparedness program in Ghana. The goal of the program is to increase resilience and strengthen disaster response by holding disaster telecommunications training programs, establishing emergency working groups, and prepositioning Emergency Telecommunications equipment including a solar power kit, a satellite terminal and required hardware, and a network management system.
Preparedness: Sierra Leone – Disaster Preparedness
In partnership with Brussels Airlines and United Airlines, Airlink continues to support RE:ACT Disaster Response’s programs in Sierra Leone. Due to the success from the previous program earlier in the year, the team was invited back to Sierra Leone to partner with and further develop the emergency response capacity of the Freetown City Council’s Disaster Risk Management ream. The training conducted by RE:ACT will allow the team to respond to all types of emergency and disaster incidents within Freetown in a measured, structured, and timely way.
