Coronavirus: PPE Delivered Into RAF Brize Norton

Personal protective equipment (PPE) for medical staff has been delivered into a Royal Air Force base ready to be distributed across the UK.

The supplies will provide crucial protection from the coronavirus to medical personnel during the pandemic.

A total of 250,000 items of PPE arrived at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire on Friday following an agreement between the United Kingdom and Turkey.

"The delivery of this vital equipment will bring protection and relief to thousands of critical workers across the UK, as they bravely and tirelessly work to keep us safe," Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said.

"It is also a tribute to the strong bilateral ties with our ally Turkey, and I am immensely grateful for their kind gesture.

"As NATO Allies we can always depend on each other, whatever the threats we face," he added.

The equipment includes 50,000 N-95 face masks, 100,000 surgical masks and 100,000 protective suits.

The supplies will be taken to a regional NHS distribution hub to be delivered to medical centres.

RAF bases have been a vital resource during the COVID-19 pandemic, with military and chartered civilian flights utilising them to deliver resources and repatriate Britons stranded across the globe.

This comes after 37 tonnes of UK aid was supplied by an RAF C-17 last month to those affected by the crisis on Turkey's border with Syria.

Cover image: MOD.