*Photo: Mallam Jalal Ahmad Arabi*
By Mikail Mumuni in Makkah
The final flight for the 2024 Hajj outbound operations took off in the early hours of Monday,June 10th 2024 from Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory to Madinah, while the return journey from the holy land is slated to commence on the 22nd of June 2024 .
Fatima Sanda Usara,Assistant Director,Public Affairs, disclosed this in a press statement.
Usara noted that “The airlift combines about 211 remaining pilgrims from Zamfara, Sokoto, Kebbi, Bauchi, FCT and Niger states. Similarly included in the FlyNas flight are the last batch of officials for the 2024 Hajj. This flight marks the end of the year’s Hajj outbound airlift to Makkah for state quota pilgrims.
She said Malam Jalal Ahmad Arabi, Chairman/CEO of the Commission at a press conference at NAHCON Headquarters in Abuja on Sunday, expressed satisfaction with the successful completion of airlift of pilgrims 72 hours before announcement of the deadline set by Saudi authorities for the season.
In the same vein, the Commission also achieved 100% movement of pilgrims to Madinah pre-Arafat.
The Chairman, according to her, commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima for the critical support they offered to ensure a successful Hajj operation and promised that the Commission will reciprocate by doing its bid in ensuring a smooth Hajj exercise.
While noting the positive contribution provided by the media, the Chairman commended them for their dogged reportage of the exercise.
The Chairman appreciated the pilgrims for their resilience and determination despite the odds.
He concluded by restating NAHCON’s commitment to ensuring the welfare of Nigeria’s pilgrims in the best humanly way.
The NAHCON spokesperson however stated that Aero Contractors will end its airlift of Private Tour Operators pilgrims by 2 pm afternoon of Monday 10th June 2024.
“All other Private Tour Operators are expected to conclude conveyance of their pilgrims before closure of Jeddah and Madinah airports for all inbound Hajj airlift operations,” She said.
Meanwhile, the return journey for the 2024 Hajj is slated to commence on the 22nd of June 2024 based on first-in-first-out basis.
Usara said slots for the return journey have been secured by all airlines.
