Freight forwarding giant DHL carried and shipped more than the usual parcels, pallets, and planeloads in 2024 — here are some of the firm’s more interesting deliveries this year, a press release (pdf) details.

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#1- Apes and scavengers: DHL shipped Chocolat — a disabled chimpanzee — from Nairobi to East Midlands Airport in the UK and took him on a road trip to Dorset to be rehomed in the Monkey World Ape Rescue Center. DHL also relocated 163 Cape and African White-backed vultures in January from a rehabilitation facility near Pretoria in South Africa to the Shamwari wildlife reserve in the country’s Eastern Cape. The transportation process involved two 34-ton trucks along with five support and security vehicles to ensure the 18-hour journey was seamless and safe.

#2- James Bond collectibles: The shipping giant transported over 130 pieces of James Bond memorabilia from Prague’s “Bond in Motion” exhibition to Vienna’s “007 Action” display using 22 trucks, including specialized enclosed car carriers with hydraulic lifts. The items included 27 cars, eight motorcycles, costumes, parachutes, and James Bond’s driving licenses. It also shipped the eight-meter-long, high-speed ice dragster and a helicopter.

#3- Orchestral masterworks: Over 60 valuable instruments of the London Philharmonic Orchestra including double basses, cellos, timpani, and a harp were transported from the UK to Japan for a concert. The shipment covered 9.5k km by air and road, where DHL had to maintain a constant temperature between 17 and 21 degrees celsius to prevent wooden instruments from warping or cracking.

#4- A mobile heart clinic? The firm delivered the world’s first mobile heart clinic from Germany to El Salvador back in February. The shipment consisted of 11 containers transported by sea and road. DHL then moved the clinic to Burundi in East Africa in May to continue its mission.

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