Turkey has sent a second planeload of emergency equipment to Britain to help medics fighting the deadly coronavirus.
The first flight from Ankara took off on Friday carrying PPE including surgical masks, N95 industrial masks and hazmat suits, with a second flight landing on Saturday at RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire, the defence ministry said.
The items were sent in boxes displaying the words of 13th century Sufi Poet Jalaluddin Rumi: ‘After hopelessness, there is so much hope and after darkness, there is the much brighter sun.’
In the past weeks, Turkey has similarly donated medical supplies to Italy, Spain – who like the UK are NATO allies – as well as five countries in the Balkans.
The first flight from Ankara took off on Friday carrying PPE including surgical masks, N95 industrial masks and hazmat suits, with a second flight landing on Saturday at RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire (pictured), the defence ministry said
The items were sent in boxes displaying the words of 13th century Sufi Poet Jalaluddin Rumi: ‘After hopelessness, there is so much hope and after darkness, there is the much brighter sun’
In the past weeks, Turkey has similarly donated medical supplies to Italy , Spain – who like the UK are NATO allies – as well as five countries in the Balkans. Pictured: A RAF Brize Norton on Saturday
The RAF tweeted: ‘A Turkish Air Force A400M has landed at @RAFBrizeNorton to deliver 250,000 items of PPE equipment for our @NHSuk.
‘Thank you to Turkey, valued friend and ally, for such a vital contribution in the fight against #coronavirus #WeAreNATO #InThisTogether.’
The Turkish Defence Ministry said on Twitter: ‘At the direction of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkish Armed Forces aircraft that will transport to (the) United Kingdom the medical aid supplies prepared by Turkey’s Health Ministry to be used in the fight against COVID-19 has departed Etimesgut/Ankara.’
Wing Commander Faulks, OC 47 Squadron welcomes his Turkish Air Force counterpart to RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire on Saturday
The RAF tweeted: ‘A Turkish Air Force A400M has landed at @RAFBrizeNorton to deliver 250,000 items of PPE equipment for our @NHSuk’
The RAF added: ‘Thank you to Turkey, valued friend and ally, for such a vital contribution in the fight against #coronavirus #WeAreNATO #InThisTogether’
It later added: ‘The plane and accompanying personnel of our Turkish Armed Forces, which successfully completed the 12-hour mission by delivering health supplies to England, returned to Ankara.’
It is understood 250,000 items of PPE were delivered to Britain, including 50,000 N-95 face masks, 100,000 surgical masks and 100,000 protective suits.
The supplies were to be transported to a regional NHS distribution hub to be delivered to medical centres across the country.
It is understood 250,000 items of PPE were delivered to Britain, including 50,000 N-95 face masks, 100,000 surgical masks and 100,000 protective suits
The supplies were to be transported to a regional NHS distribution hub to be delivered to medical centres across the country
The Turkish Defence Ministry said on Twitter : ‘At the direction of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkish Armed Forces aircraft that will transport to (the) United Kingdom the medical aid supplies prepared by Turkey’s Health Ministry to be used in the fight against COVID-19 has departed Etimesgut/Ankara.’ Pictured: The plane landing on Saturday
The state-run Anadolu Agency said Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab had thanked Turkey in a phone conversation on Wednesday with his counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu, describing it as an ‘indication of strong friendship between the two countries’.
The German embassy to Britain yesterday confirmed a report in Der Spiegel that the Bundeswehr would be sending ventilators to the UK as soon as possible.
A statement on the embassy’s Twitter feed said: ‘Support for our friends in the UK – the Bundeswehr is donating 60 mobile ventilators to the UK.’
The Turkish Defence Ministry later added: ‘The plane and accompanying personnel of our Turkish Armed Forces, which successfully completed the 12-hour mission by delivering health supplies to England, returned to Ankara’
The state-run Anadolu Agency said Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab had thanked Turkey in a phone conversation on Wednesday with his counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu, describing it as an ‘indication of strong friendship between the two countries’
The NHS is currently reported to have around 10,000 ventilators – still some 8,000 short of the 18,000 which Health Secretary Matt Hancock has said will be required. Pictured: The plane from Turkey at RAF Brize Norton on Saturday
The huge payload is pictured as it was delivered to RAF Brize Norton on a glorious day in Oxfordshire on Saturday afternoon
The NHS is currently reported to have around 10,000 ventilators – still some 8,000 short of the 18,000 which Health Secretary Matt Hancock has said will be required.
The Government has appealed to British manufacturers to fill the gap, but, while a number of firms have come forward, it is taking time to gear up production.
In the meantime, the NHS has been seeking to source supplies from overseas, including 200 from the United States, with president Donald Trump saying this week: ‘They need them desperately.’