On the night of November 5 to 6, a Jordanian C-130 Hercules tactical transport plane dropped boxes of humanitarian materials to support the Jordanian hospital in Gaza. The operation was coordinated with the Israeli Armed Forces.
Slow humanitarian supplies
Since the attack on October 7, Israel has decided to launch a land but also a maritime blockade on the Gaza Strip. Egypt, the only other solution via its single Rafah crossing point, cannot however ensure a constant flow: the crossing point opens and closes depending on threats from fighters wanting to enter Egypt, Israeli bombings close to the post, etc. In fact, humanitarian aid arrives in trickles. In the air, no direct solution is possible: Yasser Arafat International Airport (ICAO: LVGZ) has been in ruins since its destruction in 2001. An airfield, called Gush Katif Airport, had a 33-meter runway. long. It was then used by the UN mission in the Gaza Strip (UNRWA) but the track was abandoned in 2004.
Refueling by air
In order to circumvent the numerous transport problems and the slow passage between Egypt and the Gaza Strip, Jordan carried out an airdrop on the Gaza Strip: on the night of November 5 to 6, a tactical transport plane C -130 Hercules of the Royal Jordanian Force dropped several boxes of humanitarian materials on an unspecified area. Once released from the rear ramp, the fall of the boxes is slowed by the opening of one or more parachutes, guaranteeing a “soft” landing of the cargo. Note that the airdropped material is probably limited: the available images only show three crates in the hold of the Hercules.
As explained by one publication on of King Abdullah II of Jordan, the objective of this operation was to supply the Jordanian hospital in the Gaza Strip. The operation was obviously coordinated with the Israeli Armed Forces.
