Maximus Air and Chapman Freeborn have recently teamed up to deliver an MRI machine to Addu Atoll in the Maldives. It is the first MRI machine to be delivered to the Hithadhoo Regional Hospital, benefitting thousands of patients.
Transporting an MRI machine may sound like a straightforward task today. However, the GAN International Airport Chapman Freeborn needed to fly to, is ill-equipped to handle large freight deliveries. This meant a lot more planning was required in order to deal with the logistics of the shipment.
It wasn’t just the MRI machine the company needed to transport. It also came with 166 components. Rather than using multiple Ilyushin IL-76 aircrafts, Chapman Freeborn partnered with Maximus Air to use their larger Antonov AN-124 aircraft. This in turn provided great cost saving benefits, as well as benefitting the environment due to fewer trips required.
The AN-124 is also known to be one of the biggest aircrafts in the world. This in itself made the operation challenging as the GAN International Airport only extended its runway in 2016. It was the first time this huge aircraft has travelled to the airport.
The team travelled from the Dubai International Airport and they had just 48 hours to organise the trip. The little notice was an additional challenge.
Up until now, patients needed to travel 350 miles to the capital of the Maldives in order to undergo an MRI scan. So, the delivery of this new machine to the Hithadhoo Regional Hospital will benefit more than 76,000 patients. It also opens up doors to deliver more MRI machines to regional hospitals on the island who previously didn’t have the means to receive large shipments.