The Much Awaited COVID-19 Vaccines Spark Hope for the Nation
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February 21 was a historical moment for Malaysians as MABkargo Sdn Bhd (MASkargo) Airbus 330-300 aircraft bearing the Jalur Gemilang livery safely landed in KL International Airport (KLIA), bringing in the vaccines to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.
MASkargo’s MH604 ferried in the first batch of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine in one of the biggest nationwide immunisation exercise, scheduled to start taking place on February 26.
Upon landing, the process of transferring the vaccine to a specialised transport was carried out at the Advanced Cargo Centre (ACC) of Terminal 1, KLIA. The vaccines were then escorted by police to a designated storage location.
According to Malaysia Aviation Group (MAG) Group Chief Executive Officer Captain Izham Ismail, live simulations and dry runs were conducted by MASkargo to ensure the success of the transport mission.
“Being the country’s national carrier, we take this responsibility of transporting the vaccines very seriously, as the success of the vaccination programme is key in helping the country achieve economic and financial recovery.
“Our skilled workforce and infrastructure are vital points in ensuring the safe secure and hygienic handling, transportation and distribution of the COVID-19 vaccines to Malaysia or any part of the world,” he said.
The distribution of COVID-19 vaccines involves highly coordinated logistical and security protocols to ensure their safe delivery to its designated storage location.
“We are satisfied that today’s mission was successfully completed, with the strong support of the respective ministries and partners. We look forward to similar missions in future, making good use of our extensive global freight network and expertise in ensuring the successful shipment of COVID-19 vaccines,” added Captain Izham in a statement.
Stringent logistical procedures for the vaccines were successfully completed through Malaysia Airports coordinated efforts with the airport operator’s Chairman Dato’ Seri DiRaja Dr Zambry Abd Kadir, Group CEO, Dato’ Mohd Shukrie Mohd Salleh and Chief Operating Officer, Dato’ Azmi Murad present to witness the historical event.
The transport of the vaccine was made possible following the agreement between the Health Ministry and Pfizer (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd for the purchase of the aforementioned vaccine.
Among those present to witness the historic moment were Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Adham Baba, Coordinating Minister for the National COVID-19 Immunisation Programme Khairy Jamaluddin, Transport Minister Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong.
