A NATO strategic airlift programme helped deliver urgently needed medical supplies to Slovakia on 25 March 2020. An Antonov AN-124 transport ferried facemasks, surgical gloves, protective suits and other supplies on a nonstop flight that started in Leipzig/Halle airport, Germany, stopped for cargo in Tianjin, China, and landed in Bratislava. The aircraft was chartered under the NATO-managed Strategic Airlift International Solution, or SALIS, which allows any of the nine participating NATO countries access to up to five AN-124s.
A multinational consortium of nine countries is chartering Antonov AN-124-100 aircraft as a Strategic Airlift International Solution (SALIS). SALIS provides assured access to up to five AN-124-100 aircraft (mission-ready within a few days in case of crisis) in support of national, NATO and European Union (EU) operations. In December 2018, the NATO Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA) signed a contract with Antonov Logistics Salis, a company based in Germany.
In addition to the AN-124 aircraft, the current contract also provide cargo capacity on other large cargo aircraft, namely AN-225, AN-22 and IL-76 (ICAO Chapter IV), subject to availability. Under this contract, SALIS participating countries are provided with assured access to strategic airlift capability for outsized cargo based on agreed quota of flying hours per year. The current contract is in place until 2021 with options for extended agreements for another five years.
