Bundeswehr flies patients across Germany to relieve hospitals

The German Bundeswehr has been helping the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic and flying patients in need of an intensive care bed across the country.

An Airbus A310 MedEvac, with capacity for six patients, took off from Memmingen airport in Bavaria to transfer patients to the north, in the state of North Rhine Westphalia.

Intensive care units at hospitals in the south and east of the country are filling with patients, while there is still spare capacity in the north and west. The situation largely reflects vaccination rates, which differ widely from region to region.

The plane landed at the Muenster/Osnabrueck airport early on Friday evening. In North Rhine Westphalia, there are 362 intensive care beds with artificial respiration available for very severe cases.

"Our situation is one that we can help, and we are doing so," North Rhine Westphalia premier Hendrik Wuest said.

A legal amendment, which was quickly approved by the state government and state parliament, was necessary to take over the patients.

The hospitals in the state are thus instructed to postpone operations that can be planned, following medical consideration, to make room for seriously ill Covid-19 patients.

A total of 50 Bavarian patients are to be transferred to other federal states, some 30 of them by Sunday. How many flights are taking place is still unclear, according to the Ministry of Defence.

The Bundeswehr has been involved in Covid-19 operations for months. Among other things, it supports vaccination campaign with staff and logistics.

The Bundeswehr has also flown patients from other European countries to Germany.