The huge rear gate of a Jordanian Air Force cargo plane slowly lowered like jaws of hard steel, revealing a hazy blue sky and the desolate landscape of northern Gaza far below.
Inside the plane's cavernous hold, relief supplies delivered by the crew are lined up in neat rows. Chest-high stacks of boxes are stacked on wooden pallets, each bound with shrink wrap and heavy straps and decorated with a picture of the Jordanian flag.
Now, as light and sound rush in, the bundle slides down the rollers on the floor and disappears out the door, silently, and perhaps inadequately, beneath a billowing parachute to provide for the desperate people below. It emerges.
Airdrops are playing a key role in efforts to deliver food, water and emergency supplies to Palestinians, as humanitarian groups and others warn of looming famine in northern Gaza and widespread famine across Gaza.
On Thursday, the Jordanian Air Force allowed a New York Times photographer to watch the plane drop aid to northern Gaza. The journey took several hours, taking off from Jordan's King Abdullah II Air Base east of Amman and returning.
Countries including Jordan, the United States, Britain and France have significantly reduced the amount of aid entering Gaza by truck since October 7, when Hamas led a deadly attack on Israel and Israel responded with a month-long aid package. They claim that they are making up for the decline. military attack.
The United Nations and aid groups have complained that deliveries by truck have been delayed by Israel's insistence on inspecting all supplies entering Gaza. Most aid trucks are only allowed into the country at two border crossings from Egypt and Israel in southern Gaza.
Israel claims that disorganization among aid agencies is the cause of delays in delivering aid to the Palestinians, and that much of the aid is diverted to Hamas and the black market. is not possible.
One of the few alternatives is to drop supplies from the air. This process takes only a few minutes in the air, but on the ground it requires extensive bureaucracy and hours of preparation.
Dozens of pallets pushed off the plane Thursday contained thousands of meals, Jordanians said. But humanitarian officials say airdrops are inefficient and expensive, and large military cargo planes can only transport less than a truckload.
And airdrops can be dangerous. This week, Gazan authorities announced that 12 people had drowned while trying to retrieve aid supplies that had fallen into the sea.