Flights loaded with medical equipment urgently needed to fight the COVID-19 pandemic are set to depart China for Australia in the coming days, after a scramble to secure shipping and logistics.

The business community rallied after it was revealed on Sunday that Australia was losing access to urgently needed medical supplies because of restrictions on shipping and foreign governments paying high prices upfront.

Australia needs to shore up its medical supplies, including personal protective equipment (PPE), to fight the COVID-19 pandemic. Credit:Bloomberg

Equinox Medical chief executive Philip Crealy said a number of companies - including logistics and freight specialists, airlines and management consultancies - had contacted him since Sunday to offer help.

He needed to ship more than 30 tonnes of hospital gowns, face masks and other personal protective equipment (PPE), ventilators and COVID-19 diagnostic tests destined for Australian hospitals and aged care homes.