Cargo space will be made available to prioritise the vaccine shipments across key trade lanes, the report said. Boeing Co 747-400 freighters, as well as passenger aircraft, will be deployed to boost capacity where needed, it said.

The Business Times reported the carrier has seven Boeing 747-400 freighters ready for the transportation of the coronavirus vaccines, while its passenger aircraft fleet is also ready to be deployed to ramp up capacity.

The carrier is in talks with some of the vaccine manufacturers, and working out details of the planned trials, according to the Straits Times report, citing Chin Yau Seng, senior vice-president of cargo.

While airlines have been laid low by the pandemic as passenger demand collapsed, the companies will be the workhorses of the bid to eradicate it by hauling billions of vials.

The International Air Transport Association has described the operation as the “most complex logistical exercise ever”.