288 flights have been operated under Lifeline Udan by Air India, Alliance Air, IAF and private carriers. 180 of these flights have been operated by Air India and Alliance Air. Cargo transported till date is around 479.55 tons.  Aerial distance covered by Lifeline Udan flights till date is over 2,87,061km. ‘Lifeline Udan’ flights are being operated by MoCA to transport essential medical cargo to remote parts of the country to support India’s war against COVID-19.

 Pawan Hans helicopters have carried 1.86 tons of cargo covering a distance of 6265 kms till 18 April 2020.  Helicopter services including Pawan Hans Ltd have been operating in J&K, Ladakh, Islands and North East region transporting critical medical cargo and patients. The domestic Lifeline Udan cargo includes COVID-19 related reagents, enzymes, medical equipment, testing kits, Personal protective equipment (PPE), masks, gloves, other materials of HLL and ICMR; cargo requisitioned by State/UT Governments and postal packets etc.

Special focus has been on the North East Region, island territories and the hill states. Air India and IAF collaborated primarily for J&K, Ladakh, North-East and other    island regions.

 Domestic Cargo Operators SpiceJet, Blue Dart and Indigo are operating cargo flights on a commercial basis. Spicejet operated 410 cargo flights during 24 March to 18 April 2020 covering a distance of 6,00,261 km and carrying 3270 tons of cargo. Out of these 128 were international cargo flights. Blue Dart operated 141 domestic cargo flights covering a distance of 1,39,179 km and carrying 2241 tons of cargo during 25 March to 18 April 2020. Indigo has operated 31 cargo flights during 3-18 April 2020 covering a distance of 32,290 km and carrying around 48 tons of cargo.  This also includes medical supplies carried free of cost for the government.

International Sector- The date-wise quantity of medical cargo brought in after cargo air-bridge was established with East Asia for transportation of pharmaceuticals, medical equipment and Covid-19 relief material, is as follows:

Within South Asia, Air India transported around 9 tons of supplies on 7 April 2020 and tonnes on 8 April 2020 to Colombo.

Air India operated two flights between Mumbai- Frankfurt and Mumbai- London last week under the Krishi Udan program, carrying seasonal fruits and vegetables from Mumbai and returning with general cargo. Air India operated another flight on 15 April 2020 between Delhi-Seychelles-Mauritius-Delhi, carrying medical supplies.

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RJ/NG