\n
![](\"https:\/\/content.fortune.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/AP24061842262485-e1709415299947.jpg?w=2048\")
<\/p>\n [ad_1]
\n<\/p>\n
U.S. military C-130 cargo planes\u00a0dropped food<\/a>\u00a0in pallets over Gaza on Saturday in the opening stage of an emergency humanitarian assistance authorized by President Joe Biden after more than 100 Palestinians who had surged to pull goods off an aid convoy were\u00a0killed during a chaotic encounter with Israeli troops<\/a>.<\/p>\n Three planes from Air Forces Central dropped 66 bundles containing about 38,000 meals into Gaza at 8:30 a.m. EST (3:30 p.m. local). The bundles were dropped in southwest Gaza, on the beach along the territory\u2019s Mediterranean coast. The airdrop was coordinated with the Royal Jordanian Air Force, which said it had two food airdrops Saturday in northern Gaza and has conducted several rounds in recent months.<\/p>\n \u201cThe combined operation included U.S. Air Force and RJAF C-130 aircraft and respective Army Soldiers specialized in aerial delivery of supplies, built bundles and ensured the safe drop of food aid,\u201d U.S. Central Command said in a post on \u201cX\u201d, formerly known as Twitter<\/a>.<\/p>\n The U.S.\u00a0airdrop<\/a>\u00a0is expected to be the first of many.<\/p>\n Three Biden administration officials said the planes dropped the military Meals Ready to Eat (MREs) \u2014 shelf-stable meals that contain a day\u2019s worth of calories in each sealed package \u2014 in locations that were thought would provide civilians with the greatest level of safety to access aid. Afterward, the U.S. monitored the sites and was able to see civilians approach and distribute food among themselves, according to the officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to provide additional details that had not been made public.<\/p>\n President Joe Biden on Friday announced the U.S. would begin air dropping food to starving Gazans after at least 115 Palestinians were killed and hundreds more wounded in the Thursday attack as they scrambled for aid, the\u00a0Health Ministry in Hamas-ruled Gaza<\/a>\u00a0said.<\/p>\n Hundreds of people had rushed about 30 trucks bringing a predawn delivery of aid to the north. Palestinians said nearby Israeli troops shot into the crowds. Israel said they fired warning shots toward the crowd and insisted many of the dead were trampled.<\/p>\n White House national security spokesperson John Kirby<\/a> said Friday that the airdrops were being planned to deliver emergency humanitarian assistance in a safe way to people on the ground. The United States believes the airdrops will help address the dire situation in Gaza, but they are no replacement for trucks, which can transport far more aid more effectively, though Thursday\u2019s events also showed the risks with ground transport.<\/p>\n Kirby said the airdrops have an advantage over trucks because planes can move aid to a particular location very quickly. But in terms of volume, the airdrops will be \u201ca supplement to, not a replacement for moving things in by ground.\u201d<\/p>\n The C-130 is widely used<\/a>\u00a0to deliver aid to remote places because of its ability to land in austere environments.<\/p>\n A C-130 can airlift as much as 42,000 pounds of cargo and its crews know how to rig the cargo, which sometimes can include even vehicles, onto massive pallets that can be safely dropped out of the back of the aircraft.<\/p>\n Air Force loadmasters secure the bundles onto pallets with netting that is rigged for release in the back of a C-130, and then crews release it with a parachute when the aircraft reaches the intended delivery zone.<\/p>\n The Air Force\u2019s C-130 has been used in years past to air drop humanitarian into Afghanistan, Iraq, Haiti and other locations and the airframe is used in an annual multi-national \u201cOperation Christmas Drop\u201d that air drops pallets of toys, supplies, nonperishable food and fishing supplies to remote locations in the Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic of Palau.<\/p>\n Since the war began on Oct. 7, Israel has barred entry of food, water, medicine and other supplies, except for a trickle of aid entering the south from Egypt at the Rafah crossing and Israel\u2019s Kerem Shalom crossing.<\/p>\n The United Nations says one-quarter of Gaza\u2019s 2.3 million people\u00a0face starvation<\/a>. Aid officials have said that airdrops are not an efficient means of distributing aid and are a measure of last resort.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\nSubscribe to Well Adjusted, our newsletter full of simple strategies to work smarter and live better, from the Fortune Well team. Sign up<\/a> for free today.<\/div>\n