London: The world’s largest cargo plane left Belfast in Northern Ireland on Friday, carrying three 18-tonne oxygen generators and 1,000 ventilators as part of the UK’s latest response to India’s COVID-19 crisis, the British government said. Airport staff worked through the night to load the life-saving equipment funded by the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.
Each of the three oxygen generation plants – the size of 40-foot freight containers – produces 500 litres of oxygen a minute, enough for 50 people to use at a time. They are expected to reach India on Sunday morning, and the Indian Red Cross Society will transfer them to hospitals.
“The UK is sending surplus oxygen generators from Northern Ireland to India. This life-saving equipment will support the country’s hospitals as they care for vulnerable COVID patients,” said UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab.
“The UK and India are working together to tackle this pandemic. No-one is safe until we are all safe,” he said.
The latest support package is in addition to 200 ventilators and 495 oxygen concentrators that the UK sent to India last month. It follows discussions with India and a pledge from Prime Minister Boris Johnson for the UK to do all it can to help, the UK foreign office said.
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