The United States Air Force coordinated the transport of a donation of more than 87 thousand personal protection items that were sent to Chile by the American non-profit organization, Project Hope, in order to help face the Covid-19 pandemic. This NGO offers assistance to respond to various 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 El Bosque Air Base of the Chilean Air Force (FACH) 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 against Covid-19.
The shipment sent by Project Hope, for a total value of 143 thousand dollars, includes KN95 masks, Uniflex face shields, hand sanitizers, and non-surgical bibs, which were transported on 49 pallets and whose total weight reached 6,327 kilos.
A part of these personal protection kits will be distributed to the National Council for the Protection of the Elderly (CONAPRAN for its initials in Spanish) 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 handling of the personnel of the US Department of Defense in the Office of Security Cooperation of the US Embassy in Chile.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, the United States has joined the efforts of all sectors to help Chile respond to Covid.
Transfer of Hercules C-130 to the FACH
The transfer of the Project Hope donation was carried out aboard one of the two Hercules C-130s 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 of the United States. This transfer has the authorization of the United States Congress and is a delivery that is made at no cost to the trans-Andean country.
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 aircraft 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 air-medical and firefighting missions. The second C-130 contemplated in this transfer will arrive in Chile in the next few months.
