Riyadh: The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) has announced the successful conclusion of the Haj season 1444 AH at the level of the air transport system, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.
The Kingdom’s international airports provided services to more than 1.5 million pilgrims, with a total number of round-trip flights of approximately 3.2 million passengers through 102 airlines during the Haj period.
According to GACA, the number of passengers during this year’s Haj season increased over 86 percent compared with 2022.
The statistics of flights during the Haj season showed that Indonesia topped the list for incoming and outgoing pilgrims, followed by India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nigeria.
The Baggage-Free Haj initiative, which aims to improve services for departing pilgrims through airports, has also proven successful, with more than 680,000 pilgrims, including 2,200 flights, handling more than 1.148 million bags.
The GACA President, Abdulaziz bin Abdullah Al-Duailej, emphasized the success of the operational plan and its remarkable achievements.
Al-Duailej expressed his appreciation for all sectors that played a pivotal role in efficiently managing the flow of pilgrims at airports during this year’s Haj season.
After a lull of nearly three years, Haj was performed without any COVID-19 restrictions.
On Tuesday, June 27, Saudi Arabia announced that the total number of pilgrims this Haj season has recorded more than 1.8 million, including more than 184,000 from home, from more than 150 countries.
The Haj pilgrimage to Makkah is a mandatory religious duty for those Muslims who are physically and financially able to perform it at least once in a lifetime.
