Summary and Highlights
Days since October 8th Earthquake:109

• Draft 3 of the LSS pipeline tracking has been released. These figures indicate a minimum of 17,500 tonnes of key non-food relief items entering the affected area in the coming months.
• IOM is offering free packing of CGI for air transport for those who request it in an attempt to ease the bottleneck caused by badly packed metal sheeting.
• UNHAS has reassessed the current needs of the helicopter operation and its long-term planning for the future.
  

 
Contents
 
1.    Air Cargo Movement Requests
2.    LSS
3.    Visas
4.    Winter Update - Bagh
5.    CGI Packing
6.    Aviation Update: Helicopter Status

1. Air Cargo Movement Requests

Recent bad weather and road closures have brought an increase in demand for NFI (Non Food Item) air movement. There has been some confusion surrounding air cargo movement procedures. All air cargo movement requests must be placed though UNJLC (pakistan.air@unjlc.org) and are processed on a first come/first served basis.

The movement date will vary depending on current demands and availability of assets. An indication of the number of days between receipt of request and actual movement will be shown on the Movement Summary Report published each night on the UNJLC website. Users are requested to note that before UNHAS finally task an air movement they will confirm by telephone with the shipper to ensure that it is definitely ready to move. Should they not be able to make contact the shipment will not be tasked.

Any request for passenger travel on a cargo flight must be lodged with UNHAS through the passenger movement request mechanism.

2. LSS

UNJLC LSS pipeline tracking has released draft 3 of the pipeline (on order) figures which includes all available data up to January 20th, 2006. These figures indicate a minimum of 17,500 tonnes of key non-food relief items (NFIs) entering the affected area in the coming months. The Pakistan Military, foreign militaries, IOM, Atlas, UNJLC and UNHAS are making preparations for this influx.

3. Visas

Landing permits for humanitarian workers entering Pakistan for the first time will no longer be issued at the airport. A visa must be obtained in advance from the appropriate embassy. Currently some embassies are issuing these visas free of charge to relief workers while others are not. UNJLC is attempting to clarify the situation and obtain a fee waiver for those entering the country to serve the humanitarian effort. Relief workers already in Pakistan needing visa or landing permit extensions should now apply to the Directorate General of Immigration and Passports. It is not possible to renter the country on an existing landing permit, even if it has not yet expired.

4. Winter Update - Bagh

Bagh was recently hit by significant rainfall resulting in landslides, river risings, hazardous causeways and dangerous road conditions. The majority of primary and secondary roads were cut during this period, severely hampering distribution and routine movement. Military and local authority road clearance assets were overstretched, resulting in collaborative efforts to prioritise the roads needing fast clearance and rationalise the limited available assets. The Pakistan Military has now clearly articulated its civil and military plan for deployment of assets in aid of the humanitarian mission. UNOps have also sent a Remote Recon and Response team and a joint plan to ensure timely clearance of routes is underway. More storage has been provided for interagency and NGO use for all goods awaiting delivery.

In addition to this, Bagh is developing an Emergency Action Plan similar to that of Muzaffarabad (see bulletin 29, item 2) aimed at providing a clear and coordinated approach to problems caused by bad weather. This plan will include the fast tracking of goods and deal with issues such as the relocation of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) should this be necessary.

5. CGI Packing

In recent weeks, increasing use has been made of helicopter under-slung load equipment in order to strengthen the efficiency of the flying operation. The under-slinging of CGI sheeting has caused problems, with sheets sometimes damaging nets or becoming unstable in flight. IOM now has a prototype of stackable wooden frames designed specifically to overcome this problem and trials held at Abbottabad have proven successful. An Mi-8 can under-sling fifteen of these cases at one time, an Mi-26 can under-sling 70, and they are also appropriate for internal loading purposes. IOM is now offering free CGI packing for those requiring the service and funding negotiations for this operation are currently underway with USAID.

6. Aviation Update: Helicopter Status

The relief operation's air capacity has increased slightly with the addition of one Kamov 32 to ICRC's current helicopter fleet.
The US Military are now running sling load operations out of Chatterplain in addition to those from Muzaffarabad. On average they are transporting 150 tonnes per day with a view to increasing this in the days to come.

Based on information from FRC, UN agencies and NGOs, UNHAS has reassessed the current needs of helicopter support to the Pakistan emergency as well as the long-term needs of the operation past the end of its current mandate on April 14th, 2006. At present there is a clear indication that more NFIs are arriving. This fact combined with the deteriorating road situation suggests that an increase in helicopter support is called for rather than the reduction of available assets which is currently taking place. In conjunction, the FRC has concluded that air capacity will be needed for relief and reconstruction work throughout 2006 and WFP has announced its intention to airlift food, seeds and equipment into the affected area through 2006. Two of the NATO CH-53s have already left Pakistan and the US Military commitment will probably not continue past March 31st. Based on all of these facts, UNHAS has drawn up a new fleet projection and project extension lasting until the end of 2006 to ensure that helicopter support to the humanitarian mission can be sustained at its current capacity until the end of May 2006. It thereafter envisages a reduction of capacity which would sustain passenger flights at their current level and provide cargo capacity of approximately 100 tonnes per day for the rest of the year. Currently, UNHAS funding is due to run out at the end of February if it continues to operate at its current rate.