Japan's First Vaccine Transport Behind the Scenes April 7, 20:07
"It's not in the life of a freightman in the life of a company to be able to do this kind of work," said the
president, who is currently responsible for transporting Pfizer's new coronavirus vaccine to Japan.
A top-secret transportation project that was initially unclear as to which country's airport to leave and which country's airport to arrive at.
In February, we were able to catch some information and inform the arrival of the vaccine that many people in Japan expect.
Approximately two months after the arrival of the first flight, we were able to see behind the scenes of the transportation by interviewing the people who had closed their mouths.
(Social Affairs Department Reporter Sayaka Yamada, Chiba Broadcasting Station Narita Branch Reporter Teppei Yamashita)
The opening remarks were made by Toshiaki Toyama (60 years old), the president of ANA Cargo, which is responsible for freight transportation in the ANA Group.
President Toyama has been working mainly in the freight field for 30 years after changing jobs from a major logistics company.
The other day, we revealed to us behind the scenes of the transportation of Japan's first new coronavirus vaccine.
President Toyama:
"It's an unprecedented transport in the first place. At first, I had no idea which country's pharmaceutical company would develop the vaccine, and I didn't even know that the Japanese government would buy it. I don't know who would order the transport or anything. I started collecting information. "
Gathering information on vaccines that have no shadow or shape
President Toyama moved to receive an order for vaccine transportation in May last year, almost a year ago.
He said he was paying attention to pharmaceuticals and medical products as future growth fields for air cargo, and secretly gave instructions to the marketing team.
At that time, a city blockade (lockdown) was issued overseas, the first state of emergency was declared domestically, and people disappeared from airports, especially international terminals.
The aviation industry, which has been hit by an unprecedented decline in demand, will be forced into a difficult situation, such as temporary leave of employees and reduction of lump sum payments in the summer.
Vaccine development in the world has just begun, and Kazuya Imaoka (35 years old) of the marketing team who received the instruction seems to catch the cloud while it is completely unclear which country's pharmaceutical company will develop what kind of vaccine when. I decided to challenge sales activities.
Mr. Imaoka
"At that time, I thought that the country would take the initiative like importing masks, and when I asked the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, I was told that the country would not be involved in the means of import. I don't know at all, I don't know how much vaccine will be, only for the people who need it, or for everyone in Japan. Maybe I'll use a ship instead of an airplane for transportation. I don't know everything. It started in the midst of the process. "
Mr. Imaoka and his colleagues decided to start by examining the trade statistics of the Ministry of Finance to find out how much general vaccines such as influenza vaccines come from which countries.
Gradually, it has become clear that many vaccines are imported from overseas, and that manufacturing bases are concentrated mainly in Belgium, and that they are transported in the temperature range of around 2 ° C to 8 ° C.
In September of last year, four months after we started collecting information by groping, Mr. Imaoka and his colleagues were finally able to find out the terms and conditions of the transportation contract for the new coronavirus vaccine being developed by Pfizer.
One of the conditions, the temperature zone of transportation, is described in Mr. Imaoka's notebook at that time.
It's minus 70 degrees.
It was a temperature far from the conventional vaccine transport temperature that I learned from the preliminary survey.
Furthermore, I was able to know the amount of dry ice to achieve that.
Being able to get information in September led me to live after that.
Don't get caught up in the rules
The amount of dry ice was large.
In fact, the amount of dry ice that can be loaded on an aircraft is strictly limited by company regulations.
Dry ice is a solidified form of carbon dioxide that, when melted, swells 750 times in volume, and when sealed, it can explode and cause carbon dioxide poisoning.
Mr. Imaoka:
"At first, I thought about it according to the company regulations so far, so I can only carry a small amount at a time. So, considering that I will deliver vaccines all over Japan, how many machines do I need? I thought I would need a lot of equipment. "
The country had agreed that if Pfizer succeeded in developing it, it would receive a supply of 60 million people.
According to the regulations, the number of flights required to transport the vaccine was around 800.
With many people waiting for a vaccine and having to deliver it as soon as possible, this is time consuming, costly and impractical.
If this issue is not cleared, it is unlikely that we will be able to receive an order.
Mr. Imaoka and his colleagues immediately set out to make an exception to the company's regulations that limit the amount of dry ice loaded.
It is unusual to make adjustments to relax safety regulations.
To change the regulations, it is necessary to notify the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism.
We gathered information on manufacturers and overseas airlines, held discussions with the safety and flight departments at the head office, simulated them, and added them to the regulations over a three-month period.
It was December when we conducted a test transport and weighed the box containing dry ice to determine how much carbon dioxide had melted and confirmed that there was no problem.
The order contract was signed in December, so it was just in time.
Return flight and change of timetable The aim is
At the same time as making exceptions to the company regulations for dry ice, Mr. Imaoka and his colleagues took another step to receive an order.
The number of passengers dropped sharply in Corona, and the return flight between Brussels Airport and Narita Airport in Belgium, which had been suspended, was reopened at the head office in October.
At the airport where the vaccine is expected to be carried out, the fact that ground staff who guide and maintain aircraft and load cargo are in operation will lead to credibility and orders.
President Toyama
"We have decided to pick up the airport in the country where the vaccine manufacturing base is located and return the route relatively early. If there is a regular flight, we will deepen cooperation with transportation companies. By doing so, we will be able to deal with unforeseen circumstances and gain the trust of our customers. It is a kind of bet that the vaccine should come out from here, but it means that there was a hint like this. "
Furthermore, we decided to change the arrival time to Japan from 4:15 pm to 10:25 am.
The timetable change was a major tweak that affected multiple flights, but to allow the vaccine to be carried farther on the day of arrival.
Mr. Imaoka and his colleagues managed to conclude a contract with Pfizer's transportation agency by quickly obtaining information and flexibly thinking without being bound by the rules so far.
Mr. Imaoka
"Now, many employees in the passenger department are taking a temporary leave of absence, and the difficult situation continues. There were also colleagues in the prime of work who changed jobs while it was difficult to see the future. For them I also want to carry out this transportation well. I hope that the vaccines we carry will regain our pre-Corona life and become a savior to save the aviation industry. "
Request for further time reduction
Even after the contract was signed, further demands were made for the transportation of ultra-low temperature vaccines.
The request was that the time from arrival at the airport to delivery to the domestic transportation company would be reduced from the usual 120 minutes to 40 minutes.
Naoki Nanno (40 years old), who manages ground handling, commonly known as "Grahan," who transports cargo on the ground, tried to shorten the time by 80 minutes.
Mr. Nanno studied with Grahan, who is an experienced "takumi" who has handled special cargo such as world-class works of art, to carry the vaccine in the shortest time.
Unusual spot change
The first thing I did on Takumi's advice was to change the parking place called the spot.
Since many aircraft and towing vehicles come and go at the parking lot, the travel time to the warehouse varies greatly depending on the location of the spot, considering that it stops each time.
Since it was a new coronavirus vaccine, I was able to contact the airport company that manages the spot and adjust it to the spot closest to the warehouse.
It was unusual to change the assigned spot, but the adjustments made it possible to reduce it by 20 minutes.
Mr. Nanno:
"The last 20 minutes was a big issue in transportation that can never fail. It is a vaccine that many people have been waiting for, and I explained to the relevant parties how important it is to shorten the time, and responded unprecedentedly. I proceeded with
Organization of special team
We also changed the way we carry our luggage.
Instead of the usual way of unloading all the luggage and carrying it all together, he decided to carry out only the vaccine first.
For that purpose, a special team is formed, and the members are masters.
Travel the shortest distance at a speed that avoids vibration as much as possible, quickly unpack in the warehouse and transfer to the truck.
The road surface temperature of the parking lot in the summer may exceed 50 degrees Celsius, and if you get stuck due to trouble during the move, many people who expect the vaccine may not be able to reach it.
Test transportation was also carried out with a virtual cargo containing saline and dry ice instead of the vaccine.
Mr. Nanno's notebook describes the state of test transportation.
The test was done at Christmas.
According to the notebook, it takes 1 minute to open the cargo compartment door, 9 minutes to start transportation, 20 minutes to finish unpacking the cargo in the warehouse, etc., and the time from the arrival of the aircraft to the completion of each work. Is recorded in minutes.
As a result of examining whether there was any part that could be shortened and repeated examinations, we were able to shorten it by another 60 minutes, which was 40 minutes, which is one-third of the usual 120 minutes, as requested.
Mr. Minami埜
"to test in the actual aircraft, was standing the prospect of shortening the normal cargo if it 120 minutes take place to 40 minutes. I was able to confidently greet the vaccine of transport on the day. Customers also as airlines The unprecedented situation of not being able to ride on the aircraft continues. I wanted to do my best for my colleagues who are affecting my work. "
First flight, and now
This February, we caught the information that the Brussels flight would stop at a spot near the warehouse.
It was a moment when I was convinced that Japan's first vaccine was finally coming.
After that, the amount of vaccines transported increased little by little due to repeated stools, and finally "priority vaccination for the elderly" is about to begin.
Vaccine transportation is carried out silently in the face of uncertain future.
President Toyama emphasizes that he must continue to take on challenges because of the difficult situation.
President Toyama
"We have a social mission to protect the supply chain. Naturally, everyone understands it. That is, Japanese vaccines are carried responsibly by Japanese airlines. In the past, there have been various disasters and crisis situations such as the Great East Japan Earthquake and the SARS before that, and in such cases, the airline company actually came into play and carried relief supplies before carrying people. Every time, I faced various difficulties and challenged. It may not be such a big profit if I calculate how to apply the unusual power to this project, but I think that the gain is great. "
Before the new Corona, we continued to cover the aviation industry, which had been on the rise due to the increase in inbound demand.
Reservation trends during the busy season, which continues to exceed the previous year, labor shortages in ground handling, and the introduction of the world's largest passenger aircraft to Hawaii routes.
However, I suddenly witnessed that aviation demand evaporate with the new coronavirus.
After the spread of the infection, there were more opportunities to interview people in the aviation industry who lost their jobs due to the quarantine station at the airport where the virus was tested, the quiet lobby where the passengers were sparsely seen, and the people who had to take a leave of absence.
I've written a number of articles about sufferers and predicament industries that I couldn't imagine before.
Under such circumstances, I heard that they are trying to carry the new coronavirus vaccine by themselves and change the situation in Japan as much as possible.
As a reporter in charge of aviation, I would like to continue to record a major turning point for the aviation industry.
Reporter of the Social Affairs Department
Sayaka Yamada
Joined in 2010 Covered
aviation issues at the
Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism and Haneda Airport
Chiba Broadcasting Station reporter
Teppei Yamashita
Joined in
2013 The
first place was the Kitakyushu station, and
now the Narita branch office
covers airports, etc.