Virgin Atlantic doubles South Africa cargo capacity

Virgin Atlantic Cargo has increased its support for South Africa’s thriving air cargo market with the start of a second daily service connecting London and Johannesburg.

The launch of double daily Boeing 787-9 flights is also giving a welcome boost to Virgin Atlantic customers in the US, who now have access to additional cargo capacity to South Africa over London.

Virgin is continuing to see strong demand for capacity to and from South Africa following on from positive revenue and tonnage gains on the route in 2017. In the first eight months of this year, US-South Africa volumes have shown the biggest growth, up 8% year-on-year, while traffic from Johannesburg is 2% higher thanks to regular shipments of perishables – including pre-packed fruit salads, vegetables and stone fruits, as well as car parts, computer components, mining equipment and personal effects. The route is also popular for courier traffic and customers moving valuable cargoes.