Fruit Flyer
Former overnight train in Australia
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The Fruit Flyer was a fast overnight freight train operated by the Victorian Railways to bring fruit produce from the Mildura district to the Melbourne Markets. It first ran on 13 October 1958.[1]
| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Service type | Freight train |
| First service | 13 October 1958 |
| Former operator | Victorian Railways |
| Route | |
| Termini | Mildura Dynon Freight Terminal |
| Stops | Irymple Red Cliffs Carwarp Hattah |
| Distance travelled | 566 kilometres |
| Average journey time | 10 hours |
| Service frequency | 6 x weekly (Sun-Fri) |
| Lines used | Mildura Serviceton |
| Technical | |
| Track gauge | 1,600 mm (5 ft 3 in) |
| Operating speed | 110 km/h |
It departed Mildura at 17:00, loading at Irymple, Red Cliffs, Carwarp and Hattah before running express to Dynon Freight Terminal arriving at 03:00. To allow it to operate at the line speed of 70 mph (110 km/h), the wagons were fitted with bogies similar to those fitted on passenger carriages.[1]
It initially operated three times weekly on Monday, Wednesday and Friday nights, but within a few weeks this had increased to four times.[1][2] By 1961 it was running six times a week, Sunday to Friday.[3][4][5][6]