Together for the earthquake victims: SunExpress, DPD, FIEGE, time:matters and Lufthansa Cargo launch air bridge between Germany and Türkiye

FRANKFURT, GERMANY—Using synergies and providing unbureaucratic help together: That is the goal of the relief alliance of leading transport and logistics partners SunExpress, DPD, FIEGE, time:matters, CB Customs Broker GmbH and Lufthansa Cargo.

SunExpress, the joint venture between Lufthansa and Turkish Airlines, had brought the companies together to maintain an air bridge from Germany to the crisis region in the coming weeks. More than 1,000 tons of relief supplies are to be transported to the crisis region as part of the “Wirhelfengemeinsam” (“We’re helping together”) initiative.

As of February 17, 2023, two Boeing 777 freighters operated by Lufthansa Cargo brought urgently needed relief supplies such as blankets, hygiene articles and food to the crisis region.

From February 20, 2023, SunExpress used flights under flight number XQ8881 for cargo-only transport every Monday and Tuesday. SunExpress has received an exemption from the relevant authorities for these so-called cargo flights. SunExpress also flies daily from Frankfurt to Antalya and will load relief goods on these flights.

DPD parcel stores accept relief packages

 

People are very willing to help those affected in the earthquake zones. With this joint initiative, the companies involved also want to give private donors the opportunity to help quickly and easily. Relief packages containing urgently needed aid supplies can be handed in in the 7,500 DPD stores from Monday, February 20, 2023.

 

The initiative works closely with the aid organization AFAD in Turkey, which provides information on which relief supplies are urgently needed at any given time. At the moment, aid packages up to a maximum of 20kg with the following contents can be handed in: Unused or as good as new winter clothing for babies, children, men and womensleeping bags, blankets,scarves, diapers,Baby bottles and nipples for babies, gloves;Food (dry products like bread and cookies; baby food); Hygiene boxes (soap, shampoo; no liquids!);Sanitary pads.

A parcel slip must be printed out in advance, which is free of charge for donation parcels. The link to this and further information can be found on the initiative’s website at www.wir-helfen-gemeinsam.de.

Companies can also make an important contribution and support the Airlift as sponsors or with donations in kind. Interested companies are asked to contact the initiative directly. Contact details can be found on the initiative’s website.

“I would like to express my deepest gratitude to all partners,” said Max Kownatzki CEO of SunExpress Airlines. “Thanks to their flexibility and willingness to help, it was only possible at all to set up this airlift and put it into action within a few days. Now, together, we can do what is most important to all of us in the coming weeks: provide targeted help on the ground to at least somewhat alleviate the suffering of the people affected by the tragedy. The airlift is an important extension of our previous commitment in the form of rescue and evacuation flights as well as the free transport of cargo, which we have already been offering since February 6.”

“This disaster affects us all. Many of our colleagues are from Türkiye. At the same time, we feel an overwhelming willingness to help – among us in the team as well as among people throughout Germany. From Monday, relief packages can therefore be dropped off in our DPD Parcel Shops,” says Andreas Thams, Chief Sales Officer at DPD Germany.

“Countless people have been affected by the earthquake disaster in Türkiye and Syria. The terrible pictures and news make stunned and sad. Many colleagues in our FIEGE team have relatives and friends in Türkiye or Syria. For us, it goes without saying that we are helping in this emergency situation,” says Felix Fiege, co-CEO of FIEGE, who runs the family business together with his cousin Jens Fiege in the fifth generation.

Jens Fiege adds, “By collecting the donations in our warehouses and packing and loading the relief supplies, we want to do our part for the airlift – and hope that in this way we can alleviate the suffering of the affected people in the earthquake areas at least a little.”

“The enormous willingness of people to help those affected in the earthquake zone is overwhelming. As an airfreight company, we can make a concrete contribution to supplying the people on the ground and at the same time support the many private initiatives in their desire to help. I would like to thank all employees whose work made the implementation of the airlift possible so quickly,” said Dorothea von Boxberg, Chairman of the Executive Board and CEO of Lufthansa Cargo AG.

The need for aid in the earthquake zone is so great that a stable and continuous transport process between Germany and Türkiye is essential to ensure that the people on the ground are supplied. By utilizing synergies and the expertise of the individual parties involved, the enormous private willingness to help on the part of the population is being reliably channeled as part of the airlift.

The private donations received in the DPD stores are distributed via the logistics centers of the FIEGE Group, coordinated by the logistics service provider time:matters, cleared through customs by the customs service provider CB Customs Broker and flown to Antalya several times a week by air freight from SunExpress and Lufthansa Cargo.

In Antalya, the relief supplies are transported to the earthquake areas with the help of the local disaster management authority AFAD and the logistics partners DSV and Celebi.