Raytheon Technologies delivers oxygen trucks to support COVID-19 relief in India
The COVID-19 crisis continues to impact India, with more than 200,000 new cases and thousands of deaths reported daily. And life-saving supplies like oxygen and personal protective equipment are scarce.
Raytheon Technologies quickly mobilized its global network of engineering and ingenuity to support its 5,000 colleagues in India, their families and their communities. The company retrofitted four mobile oxygen trucks, which were delivered to the Indian Red Cross Society in New Delhi this week. The trucks, originally built to refill oxygen on military aircraft, are uniquely suited to fill a critical gap in India’s oxygen transportation infrastructure and support COVID relief efforts on the ground.
The trucks are produced at the Lübeck, Germany, location of Collins Aerospace, a Raytheon Technologies business. Each truck carries up to 270,000 liters of oxygen to areas in need. They can fill portable oxygen cylinders as well as deliver supplemental oxygen to hospitals.
“Considering India is challenged by COVID-19 now spreading to rural parts of the country, these trucks will be very helpful in delivering oxygen to semi-urban and remote areas,” said Samit Ray, Raytheon Technologies’ regional director of government affairs in Southeast Asia.
To convert the trucks for use in India, Collins ruggedized and retrofitted them with alternate adapters to enable filling of standard medical oxygen products.
“We have employees, customers and suppliers throughout India who need assistance, and this is just one immediate way to help make a meaningful difference,” said Troy Brunk, president of Interiors for Collins Aerospace.
The trucks are part of Raytheon Technologies’ larger response to India’s COVID-19 crisis. To date, the company has donated 1.2 million pieces of personal protective equipment, along with funding for 1,000 oxygen concentrators and assistance to local relief organizations. The company is also matching employee donations to numerous nonprofits supporting COVID-19 relief efforts.
Tackling this pandemic requires a global response, and Raytheon Technologies stands ready to support our colleagues and communities – in this moment and the next.
