The aircraft charter industry has strengthened again in 2024 in response to crises around the world, once again highlighting the importance of chartered aircraft. The industry has been busy this year assisting with humanitarian operations in the Far East, Africa, the Middle East and the Caribbean, as well as North and South America, following a number of natural disasters and civil unrest.
“The industry has been called into action several times this year, around the world, to facilitate flights to disaster-stricken areas,” explains Ben Dinsdale, Director of Government and Humanitarian Services at Air Charter Service. “It is a time when the charter community comes together – in such a In these situations, multiple skills are required, from a range of specialists across the globe. From navigating the region’s geopolitical landscape to executing complex operations in remote areas, all made possible by our talented and dedicated operators, ground staff and support crews. Around the world.
“This year, there have been multiple situations where the industry has been asked to help, with several natural disasters and civil unrest occurring. In Papua New Guinea, a devastating landslide occurred where a large portion of Mount Maungalu collapsed, burying hundreds of homes in a remote community – Displaced survivors were in desperate need of shelter and medicine. Brazil’s worst flood in 80 years caused widespread landslides and dam collapses, displacing at least 580,000. People were displaced from their homes and needed shelter and medical supplies in the immediate aftermath Hurricane Beryl hit the Caribbean hard, causing widespread damage to many islands in the region, prompting air aid flights to the area, as well as evacuations.
“The civil collapse in Haiti has displaced hundreds of thousands of people, and the escalating conflict in the Sudanese civil war has led to the mass displacement of much of the population. Both cases required multiple flights with shelter equipment. More recently, in the wake of last month’s invasion of Lebanon, The country required a large number of air aid flights, as well as multiple evacuations.
“For ACS, the Sudanese civil war led to a series of charter flights to Port Sudan and N’Djamena in Chad, with help from Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates, and we used a wide range of aircraft types. But the biggest operation this year has been over the last month or so, following Invasion of Lebanon: We have arranged more than 20 cargo flights carrying more than 600 tons of aid, in addition to organizing 30 evacuation planes to transport several thousand people out of the country.
“At ACS, we are in an almost unique position with our truly global network of offices, which means that we have been involved in and responded to almost every humanitarian logistics operation over the past few decades. In situations like these, we feel fortunate to be able to call on an extremely talented network of industry suppliers to implement These complex operations around the world This year has once again highlighted some of the vitally important work that the aircraft leasing industry has to offer.
