Turkish Cargo marked a milestone in transporting pharma as it reported moving 335 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines to 61 countries worldwide.
The carrier said its TK Pharma service — which enables the transport of
pharmaceutical goods to 132 countries — allowed Turkish to reach an 8% market share in the air cargo medical products category last year.
Prof. Dr. Ahmet Bolat, Turkish Airlines chairman of the board and the executive committee, cited the role that the carrier played in transporting much-needed medical goods, particularly in Africa.
"By establishing a corridor between over 400 international destinations, we ensured that vaccines remained accessible for all. Especially considering the low number of carriers flying to Africa, Turkish Cargo had an important mission to make sure people of this continent could have access to vaccines," Bolat said, noting that Turkish has over 30 years of experience in carrying medical products to its SMARTIST center.
"We are ready to shoulder even bigger responsibilities for our country and world in air cargo sector," the Turkish Airlines chief added.
Turkish Cargo said it carried the most number of vaccines to Turkiye followed by Brazil with 100 million doses in 2021.
Amongst the countries with over 1 million doses delivered, there were African countries such as Mauritania, Madagascar, Rwanda, and Congo.
The carrier moved 200 million doses of Coronovac followed by 120 million doses of Biontech, 12 million doses of Astra Zeneca, and 4 million doses of Moderna.
Increased pharma demand
"Turkiye is on its way to become a global center for medical product transportation with Turkish Cargo's new air cargo facility SMARTIST at Istanbul Airport," the airline said, noting that Turkish Cargo's new air cargo facility at Istanbul Airport spans 340,000 sq m. SMARTIST is able to facilitate quick and secure transport of medicine and medical products with its heat and temperature controlled area of 9,000 sq m.
It added that the airline is able to carry important medical packages with sensitive temperature and time constraints such as medicine, vaccines, biotechnological products, diagnosis samples, sensitive medical devices, organs, and tissues with IATA-CEIV Pharma Certificate quality standards.
"Globalization and increased demand for pharmaceutical industry due to Covid-19 pandemic also increases the demand for air cargo logistics," Turkish Cargo said.
"Turkish Cargo aims to carry Turkiye to become a medical center for the world with its new investments and expert teams. With parking areas for cargo freighters around the facility, it is expected that the successful carrier will increase its service quality and market share with SMARTIST facility," it added.
