A British Airways crew has flown 2.5million pieces of PPE equipment back to the UK from China in a 28-hour non-stop mercy mission.
Seven pilots and six crew made the trip to pick up the supplies and bring them back to be used by NHS frontline staff amid a nationwide shortage.
Every seat on the Boeing 777 jet was filled with a box of protective masks, gloves and overalls while all the overhead lockers were also packed with supplies including ventilator parts.
BA arranged the flight at the request of the British Government, who paid for the flight as the row over poor planning for PPE rumbled on.
Frontline NHS workers fighting the coronavirus claim they have been left ‘petrified’ to treat patients, others had to buy their own PPE from hardware stores.
Alarming pictures have shown nurses wearing homemade gowns from bin bags and curtains.
One NHS hospital boss today even resorted to begging British fashion chains such as Burberry and Barbour to help with the shortage of gowns.
Despite the repeated pleas from medics in every corner of Britain, Health Secretary Matt Hancock has insisted there is enough of the ‘precious resource’ to go around.
Care workers fighting a hidden epidemic in care homes and bus and train drivers have also had to beg for PPE during the COVID-19 crisis.
In other developments to the coronavirus crisis engulfing Britain today:
- The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge revealed they home schooled their children during the Easter holidays without telling them;
- London Mayor Sadiq Khan called for compulsory masks to be worn on tubes and buses;
- Nicola Sturgeon took a swipe at government secrecy and urged ministers to treat the public like grown-ups;
- Questions about the UK’s coronavirus screening policy were raised after it emerged 15,000 people are flying into Britain without tests every day;
- England 1966 World Cup winner and Leeds United legend Norman Hunter died aged 76, a week after being admitted to hospital with coronavirus;
- A diabetic mother-of-three died with coronavirus a week after giving birth to her third daughter
- Coronavirus hopes were raised after an experimental Ebola drug was found to help critically-ill patients recover within a week.
A British Airways crew has flown 2.5 million pieces of PPE equipment back to the UK from China in a 28-hour non-stop mercy mission. First officer Helen Geering, 40, said it was an ‘absolute privilege’ to be able to bring supplies back to the NHS
Seven pilots and six crew made the trip to pick up the supplies and bring them back to be used by NHS frontline staff. In a video posted to social media pilot Andy Goodliffe (above) walked through the packed economy section after ground crew had completed their loading
Every seat on the Boeing 777 jet was filled with a box of protective masks, gloves and overalls while all the overhead lockers were also packed with supplies
More than two million masks were loaded into the hold of the BA flight from Shangahi to Heathrow and a further 480,000 were strapped into the economy section.
It is the first time the passenger section of a BA jet has ever been used to transport cargo.
In a video posted to social media, which has been shared thousands of times, pilot Andy Goodliffe walked through the packed economy section after the ground crew had completed their loading.
He said: ‘The whole plane is jammed. 2,000 face masks in each box.’
Opening an overhead locker to show off the load, he added:’ And a thousand in each of these.’
First officer Helen Geering, 40, was among those who took part in the 28-hour flight.
She said it was an ‘absolute privilege’ to be able to bring supplies back to the NHS.
Standing in front of seats packed with cardboard boxes she described it as a ‘precious cargo’ that would be given to the people who most need it.
Three pilots flew the jet out to Shanghai on Wednesday while the others rested during the 12-hour flight.
On the return leg the other pilots took over the controls to comply with safety regulations.
Captain Elliot Goodbody flew the final leg of the flight and said he was proud to be part of the British Airways team bringing in 20 tonnes of supplies.
Each of the seats in the economy section of the jet, which can take up to 300 people, had been filled with a box containing masks and other PPE equipment.
Ground crews at Shanghai airport in protective clothing loaded the boxes before netting was placed over the top of the seats to keep them secure during the flight.
BA arranged the flight at the request of the British government as the row over poor planning for PPE rumbled on. Demand for the crucial equipment is so acute that one NHS hospital boss begged British fashion chains such as Burberry and Barbour to help with the shortage
More than two million masks were loaded into the hold of the BA flight from Shangahi to Heathrow and a further 480,000 were strapped into the economy section
It is the first time the passenger section of a BA jet has ever been used to transport cargo
Three pilots flew the jet out to Shanghai on Wednesday while the other rested during the 12-hour flight. On the return leg the other pilots took over the controls to comply with safety regulations
Plastic sheeting had earlier been placed over the seats to protect them during the flight.
Only the business class section where the crew sat was not full of PPE equipment, which will be distributed to hospitals across the UK.
NHS staff on the coronavirus frontline are being told to reuse personal protective equipment as the ‘last resort’, a staggering leaked report revealed on Wednesday.
The document from Public Health England said the safe reuse of items was under consideration, under plans to tackle shortages of PPE, according to the BBC.
Emails seen by the locum GP and freelance BBC reporter, Dr Faye Kirkland have also revealed that some hospitals have started to wash single-use gowns so that they can be worn again, in a bid to preserve stocks.
Earlier this week it was revealed the UK had missed three chances to participate in an EU scheme to buy huge quantities of PPE.
The EU ordered €1.5billion (£1.3billion) worth of masks, gowns and gloves for doctors and nurses – but Britain did not take part in talks about the purchases.
Some 25 European countries and eight companies were involved in the joint PPE procurement scheme, The Guardian reported.
Nurses have been pictured in hospitals using clinical waste bags as PPE
Dr Alan Courtney has urged the government to give more PPE to NHS staff
Images of Motocross goggles, pictured, which an NHS doctor paid £90 for to protect his team on the coronavirus frontline, sparked outrage on social media
However, the UK did not take part in any of the three rounds of bulk-buying which were first launched by the EU in February.
The Government has previously said it was unable to join the EU’s procurement schemes as it had not received an email of invitation.
Last week the Health Secretary told NHS medics to only use the protective equipment they need because it is a ‘precious resource’.
Addressing the nationwide shortage that has left nurses ‘petrified’ to fight the crisis, Mr Hancock claimed: ‘There is enough PPE to go around.’
But he added that the supply of masks, aprons and gloves would only stretch across the UK’s healthcare workforce if it is ‘used in line with our guidance’.
Guidelines now say medics no longer need to change PPE between patients, instead wearing the same gear for longer spells – called ‘sessions’.
In the Downing Street conference, Mr Hancock admitted Number 10 was struggling to source additional PPE to help NHS workers fight Britain’s crisis.
NHS hospital boss asks British fashion brands Burberry and Barbour for help amid fears his staff will soon run out of gowns as he brands Matt Hancock’s denial of nationwide PPE shortages a ‘fantasy’
An NHS hospital boss working in southern England has asked British fashion brands to make more personal protective equipment (PPE) such as gowns for his staff.
The man, who wished to remain anonymous claimed staff at his hospital had ran out of gowns over the weekend.
It comes after Health Secretary Matt Hancock claimed hospitals had enough PPE to go around.
The hospital boss slammed these claims and insisted Mr Hancock’s theory was a ‘fantasy’.
mbulance workers transport patients outside St Thomas Hospital in Westminster, wearing personal protective equipment
NHS worker Lucía Pareja Cebrián posted an image of herself with the Barbour designed gown on social media
The man, who wished to remain anonymous, phoned the BBC’s business reporter Simon Browning and asked for the factory phone number of Burberry, which has turned over its production to make PPE for healthcare workers.
Burberry is among a list of labels including Barbour, Louis Vuitton and Philip Treacy to have pledged to manufacture equipment crucial to fighting Covid-19.
Browning said such gear was being made efficiently but was not reaching the front line quickly enough, with manufacturers telling him they have been receiving ‘upsetting’ phone calls from NHS staff about to run out of equipment.
It comes as Mr Hancock faces questions from MPs on Friday over the Government’s coronavirus response, a day after lockdown measures were extended for at least another three weeks.
Earlier this week Barbour switched from making wax jackets to creating medical gowns.
NHS workers have already thanked the luxury clothing brand for turning its factory into a production line for PPE and delivering gowns to North East hospitals.
Michael Burke, CEO of Louis Vuitton talks to an employee tailoring a protective gown, as the company makes PPE masks and gown
Pictured: The Barbour factory in Jarrow, which is now turning out the gowns for NHS workers
Barbour has teamed up with the Royal Victoria Infirmary on its first batch of gowns (file image of a Barbour jacket)
Working with the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle, its factory on Bede Industrial Estate in Jarrow, South Tyneside, has made a quantity of disposable gowns which have now been delivered to grateful staff.
The navy blue gowns arrived in Barbour branded packaging, stamped with the Royal seal of approval.
Barbour will now move to a larger scale production of gowns and scrubs for the RVI and other North East NHS trusts to support frontline medical staff who are in urgent need of these items.
Company chairman, Dame Margaret Barbour, said: ‘Everyone has a role to play in fighting COVID-19 and I wanted my daughter Helen and I to play our part by turning our South Shields factory over to produce PPE product for the NHS.
‘Our staff’s welfare is our most important priority and we have undertaken a strict risk assessment to ensure we adhere to social distancing and that they are fully protected whilst undertaking this important role.
‘I am very grateful to my staff for their overwhelming support. The factory, where we normally make our classic wax jackets is no stranger to adaptation.
‘During both World Wars, we turned the factory over to make military garments to assist the war effort.
‘We are pleased to once again be able to make a difference and this time, to support the NHS.’
It came as a new website – ppeexchange.co.uk – was launched to allow medics who need PPE to put in orders with providers who still have remaining supplies.
The site is not-for-profit and has already been flooded with requests for thousands of pieces of equipment.