ACS bases AN-12 in Philippines to support relief effort

Following organising the first civilian cargo flight into Typhoon ravaged Tacloban last Friday, Air Charter Service has worked non-stop over the weekend and managed a further four successful charters there, as well as six into the equally-affected Guiuan, with more planned in the coming days. Justin Lancaster, group cargo director at ACS, commented: “We now have an AN-12 that is running exclusively for us from Cebu and Davao into Tacloban and Guiuan, easing the backlog of the aid brought in by the larger freighters to these hubs where the warehouses are full. We decided to position the aircraft into the region at our own expense, knowing, from the amount of large cargo aircraft we had flying into Cebu, that it would be needed to get the relief goods to those who needed it as quickly as possible.” Lancaster continued: “We now have five members of ACS staff on the ground liaising with the CAAP, handling agents, the military, the tower and the relief agencies’ staff trying to make sure everything goes to plan.” Air Charter Service has already arranged more than 30 charters into and around the devastated region, moving more than 1,500 tonnes of freight. For the latest photos, please check our Twitter account: @ACS_aircharter