Free U.S. Military Humanitarian Cargo Program for Charities
Free U.S. Military Humanitarian Cargo Program for Charities
The Denton Program was formed in 1985 through a legislative amendment to 10 U.S. Code 403, whereby humanitarian cargo, from U.S. based charities, are permitted to be transported (on a space available basis) aboard U.S. military aircraft, to hardship destinations outside the United States and free of charge to the user. The Department of Defense and the Department of State (under the supervision of the U.S. Agency for International Development, USAID) work together to make this all possible.
Operation Knight Flight (OKF) was formed in 2016 as a "free to the user" facilitation enterprise to assist qualifying charitable organizations with the navigational nuances of the regulatory, administrative, and cargo-handling processes that the Denton Program mandates.
With that said, there are some important clarifications, that must be understood by charities hoping to use the Denton Program:
1. This program can only be used to transport humanitarian cargo, not emergency/disaster relief supplies (the USAID office handles these flights differently).
2. This program can only deliver to approved international locations; no stateside, or Mexico destinations.
3. All items with expiration dates must have at least one year of shelf life for medicines, and at least 18 months of shelf-life remaining for food-stuffs from the date of application.
4. All charitable organizations must designate an in-country consignee to ensure all proper host-country cargo clearances and documentation requirements have been met, and will also meet the cargo upon its arrival in-country.
Not giving up hope, we at OKF are currently petitioning the Denton Program to allow for a broader range of qualifying cargos and locations to deliver to, but in the meantime, will do all we can to ensure that we adequately support the charities that are using this great program, while ensuring regulatory compliance from the outset, and completed shipments to those in need in the end.
Believe it or not, there is a little known U.S. government program that provides a way for charity and non governmental organizations (NGO) to deliver humanitarian cargo throughout the world aboard U.S. Military aircraft for FREE. It is called the Denton Program
The Denton Program (named in honor of former Navy pilot, Vietnam prisoner-of-war and Alabama senator) legislatively passed in 1987. The Denton program grants the Secretary of Defense the approval to delegate shipments of humanitarian supplies provided by nongovernmental organizations and charity organizations to nations, without any added cost to the nation receiving supplies or the Department of Defense.
Believe it or not, there is a little known U.S. government program that provides a way for charities and non governmental organizations (NGO) to deliver humanitarian cargo throughout the world aboard U.S. Military aircraft for FREE. It is called the Denton Program
The Denton Program is an incredibly productive way for charities to deliver important cargo to the needy, but it's also a detailed program that requires specific expertise. We are Knights Templar and specialize in charitable efforts. Our deep familiarity and ongoing assistance with this program comes at no cost to you.
One of the great aspects of this program is that your application will be processed so long as you complete all of the program's required action items; another words, simply ticking the boxes.
The Denton Program uses an online portal where charity organizations register and submit their shipment details for approval, but before that can be accomplished, destination and cargo suitability and in-country logistics must be first determined and coordinated. It may seem a bit overwhelming on the surface, but we will help you get started.
Once the preliminary coordination and logistics has been established, then the focus of efforts center on packaging, packing, inspections and ground transportation to nearest suitable military where the cargo is further prepared and then loaded onto a cargo aircraft and flown to the destination. Our job is to facilitated this process for you.
After the cargo arrives to an in-country approved airfield, it will be subject to customs processing before the charity takes possession and can proceed with transportation, storage and distribution. Completion of an after action report clears the way for succeeding shipments. As with most things, prior planning and preparation is key.
Here you will gain a better understanding of the Denton Program and how Operation Knight Flight fit's in all of this.
Here you will gain a better understanding of the Denton Program and how Operation Knight Flight fit's in all of this.
There are operational, administrative, and communication processes in play to ensure program success. We discuss them here.
In support of our "A-B-C" action items listed above, here you will find guides and various forms necessary to meet the processing demands of the Denton Program
No doubt, you will have many questions about your particular situation and how best to proceed. We will try to answer some of those here.