Hercules C-130 from the US Transports Donation of 87,000 personal protection items to help Chile Respond to Pandemic
The United States Air Force coordinated the transport of a donation of more than 87,000 personal protection items that were sent to Chile by the American non-profit, Project Hope, in order to help Chile respond to the Covid-19 pandemic. This NGO offers assistance to respond to emergency situations globally through medical, educational or humanitarian aid programs.
The donation, which was transported from the United States aboard a Hercules C-130 aircraft, arrived at the Chilean Air Force (FACH) El Bosque Air Base on Thursday, April 22.
The Charge d’Affaires of the United States Embassy in Chile, Richard Glenn, who participated in a brief donation ceremony on Friday 23, highlighted that this assistance is part of the contributions given by the United States to Chile to support efforts to respond to Covid-19. The head of the diplomatic mission stressed that this initiative, together with those over the last few months, are part of the All-of-America efforts of the United States to help face the pandemic.
The shipment sent by Project Hope, for a total value of $143,000 includes KN95 masks, Uniflex face shields, hand sanitizers, and non-surgical bibs, which were transported on 49 pallets and whose total weight is 6,327 kilos. A part of these personal protection kits will be distributed to the National Council for the Protection of the Elderly (CONAPRAN) and another to the Metropolitan Regional Ministerial Secretariat (SEREMI) of the Sub-secretariat of Health. In the ceremony on Friday, the Director of Planning of the FACH, General Roberto Avendaño, and the SEREMI of Health of the Metropolitan Region, Paula Labra, also participated.
This contribution was made possible through the good offices of the personnel of the Department of Defense of the United States in the Office of Security Cooperation of the Embassy of the United States in Chile.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, the United States has joined the efforts of all sectors to help Chile respond to Covid. Detailed information on the support provided by the United States to Chile to date is available here.
Transfer of Hercules C-130 to the FACH
The Project Hope donation was transferred aboard one of the two C-130 Hercules that are being transferred to Chile this year by the United States Air Force, in accordance with the provisions established by the Foreign Assistance Act. from United States. This transfer has the authorization of the United States Congress and its delivery came at no cost to Chile.
The transfer of the aircraft is an expression of the friendship between the two countries and reflects the excellent and extensive cooperation between the United States and Chile.
The two C-130s correspond to the H model, the most recently manufactured by Lockheed-Martin Aeronautics, which will be integrated into the Chilean Air Force fleet. These are tactical airborne ships that are characterized by their use in a wide variety of operations, from the transfer of troops and logistics equipment, helicopters and armed vehicles, to support in medevac and firefighting missions. The second C-130 will be transferred to Chile in the months to come.
