As the world is gearing up to fight the Covid-19 pandemic and pharma companies are speeding up manufacturing, SpiceJet said it is gearing up to give the logistical support to help transport the vaccines.

In a statement, the Haryana-based carrier said it offers a "state-of-the-art" end-to-end logistics service for vaccines, which it developed the past months while moving healthcare-related goods worldwide.

SpiceJet noted the importance of temperature sensitivity to maintain the efficacy of the vaccine and said it has the infrastructure to support this logistic challenge.

"After playing a critical role in transporting essentials and medical supplies during the lockdown and ensuring that the country’s supply chain remained intact, SpiceXpress, the dedicated cargo arm of SpiceJet, has come forth to take up the responsibility of seamlessly transporting the vaccine through a specialized service called Spice Pharma Pro," it said in a statement.

Meanwhile, commenting on the announcement, Ajay Singh, chairman and managing director said “since the lockdown began, SpiceJet and its cargo arm, SpiceXpress, have worked relentlessly to ensure the transport of vital goods and medical supplies to all corners of India and the world.”

“We have constantly innovated – be it converting passenger planes into freighters or carrying cargo on seat. We have been preparing for the humungous task of transporting medicines, vaccines, blood samples and temperature-sensitive cargo by developing end-to-end cold chain logistics solutions,” he said.

The SpiceJet chief noted that the airline has partnered with global leaders in cold chain logistics and service providers to help shippers in packaging and extra protection.

“We have now tied up with global leaders in cold chain solutions offering active and passive packaging with dedicated equipment to perform seamless cold chain operations and I am happy to share that today SpiceXpress has the capability to transport extremely sensitive drugs and vaccines in controlled temperatures ranging from -40°c to +25°c,” he added.

“SpiceXpress is ready for the enormous task of distributing sensitive goods both domestically and internationally including Covid-19 vaccines that require stringent transportation conditions,” Singh added.

With a dedicated fleet of 17 cargo aircraft, SpiceXpress is capable of flying cargo to both domestic and a wide list of international destinations. The airline also offers a plethora of other benefits such as a network of warehouses equipped with deep freezers to enable change of cool packs and ground vehicles and containers to help transport sensitive cargo.

SpiceJet has transported 85000 tons of cargo since the lockdown in March and the airline’s international cargo network now spans over 50 international destinations including the US, the UK, Germany, France, Russia, Uzbekistan, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Thailand, China, Myanmar, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore and Canada among others.

SpiceJet is India's largest regional player operating 59 daily flights under UDAN or the Regional Connectivity Scheme. Meanwhile, the airline also operates a dedicated air cargo service under the brand name SpiceXpress across India and on international routes.