Virgin Australia is increasing cargo capacity on its Melbourne – Hong Kong services with daily services from 12 November.

Volumes have been increasing steadily in both directions since Virgin Australia commenced five Airbus A330-200 flights a week in July, and the airline says the extra capacity provided by the new daily service will support the peak perishables season from Australia as well as the e-commerce and courier business from Hong Kong.

Virgin Atlantic Cargo has generated over 1,200 tonnes of freight and courier traffic since the route began, with regular shipments including garments, shoes, electronic goods, vitamins, milk powder and meat.

The appointment of Jarrod Paterson as account manager – Melbourne in August has also helped the airline develop other lines of business such as shipments of fresh lobster, Abalone and chilled salmon from Tasmania to Hong Kong.

Virgin Atlantic regional sales manager for Australia and New Zealand, Pip Palmer says: “Our freight forwarder and courier customers are absolutely delighted that Virgin Australia is increasing its commitment to the Melbourne-Hong Kong route. Cargo volumes to and from Melbourne have exceeded our expectations so far.”

“There are a series of positive business indicators that show not only a consistent level of demand from our current customers but also opportunities for new traffic like we have started to generate from Tasmania.”

Continued inward business investment in Melbourne is also expected to help sustain long-term cargo demand, with Amazon announcing fresh investment in the state of Victoria with its plans for a 24,000 square metre e-commerce fulfilment centre in Melbourne.

Virgin Atlantic has provided long-haul international sales for Virgin Australia since 2009, also sells capacity on Virgin Australia’s operations from Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne to Los Angeles, with shipments connecting with Virgin Atlantic’s global network over both Los Angeles and Hong Kong.