Aid mission flight to Ethiopia
Tags: British Airways, Disasters Emergency Committee, Ethiopia, Kenya, London Stansted Airport, Oxfam, Somalia, Unicef
A British Airways flight will set off from Stansted to take supplies to crisis hit East Africans on Friday.
The plane, a Boeing 747, will be carrying aid heading for Ethiopia.
It will be capable of taking more than 100 tonnes of cargo, and the aid will be provided by Oxfam and Unicef.
The mercy mission will be transporting the aid to those suffering from the effects of disease, drought and famine in Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia.
Oxfam will be sending 5,000 metres of pipe on the flight from Stansted Airport to Addis Ababa, which will be used to get water to the Ethiopian refugee camp Dolo Ado.
Unicef will be loading the plane with vital emergency food and medication.
As well as supplying the plane for this mercy mission, British Airways will pass on all donations from its flights since August 1 to the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) appeal for East Africa.
BA chief executive Keith Williams said: “The worst drought in 50 years means the lives of millions of people hang in the balance.
“The generosity of our customers will make a real and tangible difference to those in desperate need.”
The DEC has said more than 10 million people have been hit by the worst droughts in 60 years and that hundreds of thousands of people are in desperate need of of food, water and emergency healthcare.
Copyright © Press Association 2011
