The Philippines’ biggest carrier, Cebu Pacific, announced that it airlifted a total of 1.5 million coronavirus vaccine doses from Beijing to Manila, in what was the single largest vaccine shipment to the country yet.

The carrier noted that it facilitated the shipments in coordination with the Department of Health (DoH) and the vaccines were transported through its A330 plane.

“We ... restate our intention to support our country’s fight against Covid-19 in any way we can. We look forward to picking up more vaccines from across the globe and aid in distributing across our widest domestic network,” said Alexander Lao, Cebu Pacific chief strategy officer.

Upon unloading from its A330 aircraft, all vaccines were thoroughly inspected by the authorities prior to uplifting to refrigerated trucks via electric forklifts.

The carrier has also been supporting the country's vaccination program through the delivery of the Covid-19 vaccines from Manila across the other parts of the archipelago.

Cebu Pacific also shipped 500,000 Sinovac vaccines from Beijing to Manila last week and prior to that, it has already transported more than 2.5 million COVID-19 doses since March 2021.

The carrier operates the widest domestic network in the Philippines covering 32 destinations, on top of its six international destinations. It has a 74-strong fleet, one of the youngest in the world, including two dedicated ATR freighters and one A330 freighter.