On 14 June, Airbus will join companies, individuals and entities around the world in drawing attention to the need for a safe, voluntary and adequate blood service, by taking part in the #MissingType campaign.
Blood for transfusions – in sufficient quantity and available quickly wherever it’s needed – is in crucial demand, whether it be for women who have complications during childbirth, seriously anemic and malnourished children, victims of large-scale catastrophes, or used during medical and surgical procedures.
The importance of augmenting the world’s blood supplies prompted the World Health Organization in 2004 to declare 14 June as World Blood Donor Day, asking that individuals and governments give thought to their part in establishing a safe blood service based on voluntary, non-remunerative blood donations.
Airbus will take part by participating in the #MissingType campaign, removing the A and B from its logo wherever it appears on the company’s social media pages and website. As part of the effort to raise awareness, and to thank voluntary donors, the #MissingType campaign targets the letters A, B, and O in texts – letters which correspond to the different blood groups.
Many employees of Airbus are already active blood donors. In 2017 in Toulouse, France, 659 people gave blood on behalf of Airbus Defence and Space and 3,267 people donated from Airbus headquarters.
By drawing attention to the need for blood, the WHO’s aim is that the world’s blood supply be drawn entirely from voluntary, unpaid donors by the year 2020. Today, some 71 countries still collect more than 50% of their blood supply from family, replacement or paid donors.
World Blood Donor Day also commemorates the birthday of Karl Landsteiner, the scientist who won the Nobel Prize for his discovery of the ABO blood group system.
