Pfizer Begins Shipping COVID-19 Vaccine to US From Belgium

United Airlines has now begun flying charter flights to pre-position initial doses of the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine all around the country.

To ensure the vaccines are delivered safely, the airline will be carrying five times of the generally allowed dry ice aboard, since Pfizer's mRNA-based vaccine needs to be stored in as cold of an environment as -70 degrees Celsius (-94 degrees Fahrenheit).

Also Tuesday, Mexico's regulatory authority, the Federal Commission for the Protection against Sanitary Risks, was set to receive from Pfizer "instructions for the vaccination process and the training method for health personnel", Ebrard said.

United plans to fly chartered cargo flights between Brussels International Airport and Chicago O'Hare International Airport to support distribution of the vaccine, according to a November 24 letter from the Federal Aviation Administration viewed by The Wall Street Journal. Pfizer has designed suitcase-size boxes, packed with dry ice to keep its vaccine doses cold, avoiding the larger, temperature-controlling containers used in transportation, giving it more flexibility to ship the vaccines faster.

The FAA said in a statement Friday that it was supporting the "first mass air shipment of a vaccine".

The Journal said its distribution plan for the vaccine, developed in conjunction with BioNTech SE of Germany, includes refrigerated storage sites at Pfizer's facilities in Kalamazoo, Michigan, and Puurs, Belgium, and expanding storage capacity at distribution sites in Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin, and in Karlsruhe, Germany.

Pfizer vaccine is expected to be approved on December 10 by US health authorities, he said.

A panel of US advisers will meet Tuesday to vote on how the COVID-19 vaccine will be prioritized in its distribution. It has submitted the trial data to the FDA with the expectation that the vaccine could be officially approved after an agency vote in mid December.