Hong Kong Air Cargo has launched a new e-commerce airfreight route between Hong Kong and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

The carrier will operate two weekly cargo flights from Hong Kong International Airport to King Khalid International Airport every Monday and Sunday using a Airbus A330-200 freighter.

The inaugural flight departed from Hong Kong International Airport at 3.45pm HKT on March 3, arriving at King Khalid International Airport at 11.30pm local time.

“This new route marks our network’s third Middle Eastern destination, following successful launches to Istanbul and Dubai,” said Hong Kong Air Cargo.

Clifford Hung, president and chief operations officer of Hong Kong Air Cargo, said: “With the introduction of our Riyadh route, we are excited to enhance our economic and trade connections with Saudi Arabia, a key nation in the Middle East region.

“This expansion is part of our strategic vision to maintain Hong Kong’s reputation as a premier air cargo logistics platform between Mainland China and the global market and a world-class international air cargo hub.”

Last month, Hong Kong Air Cargo launched a new e-commerce route between Hong Kong and Liege in Belgium, as well as a new e-commerce route to Stansted Airport.

Plus in October last year, the freighter operator expanded into Europe for the first time with an e-commerce route operating to Milan Malpensa in Italy. 

Hong Kong Air Cargo began taking steps to expand its scheduled cargo network with flights to Europe in 2021.