Alenia Aeronautica and Italian Air Force, Completes Humanitarian Medical Mission in Mali

 

ROME - From  November 23, to December 7, 2008, doctors, medical attendants, nurses and volunteers from the Italian Air Force, took part in the Give Back Light 2008 mission using the C-27J Spartan to transport everything required for a massive humanitarian medical mission in sub-Sahara Africa.

 

More than 20 missions were flown in a 15-day period, with the C-27J Spartan flying in a wide range of weather conditions, from torrential rain, extraordinarily strong crosswinds during landing in Pratica di Mare, extreme heat in Gao, Mali, and desert wind and sand to the intense cold and altitude crossing the Atlas Mountains in Morroco.

 

All flights were carried out successfully with no technical problems. The humanitarian missions involved 70 hours of flying, the transportation of 10,000 kg. of cargo and 40 mission participants from the Italian Air Force and two hospitals in Rome and Spain..

 

This is the fourth such mission which this year, saw 2,000 people receive medical examinations, resulting in 700 cataract operations and more than 300 endoscopies. Treatments were conducted in the three operating rooms set up with the equipment flown in the C-27J Spartan.

 

“We believe that the role of a company such as ours is also to make it possible to use technology, industrial and partners’ capabilities not only as means to make profit, but also as a tangible contribution towards improving everybody’s life,”  said Giovanni Bertolone, CEO of Alenia Aeronautica.

 

Alenia Aeronautica’s chief test pilot Marco Venanzetti said the C-27J Spartan is ideally suited for humanitarian missions.

 

“It has been exceptional, transporting material and personnel with no technical problems at all, landing on unpaved runways to unload rapidly and efficiently,” said Venanzetti.

For photos of the mission, click here: http://www.c-27j.ca/image-galleries/photo-gallery/c-2j-relief-mission-in-mali