Saudi Arabian airline Saudia has announced that travellers holding a flight ticket from the airline will be allowed to enter the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for a maximum of four days (or 96 hours), local media reported. The passenger will also be allowed to use this time to perform Haj and Umrah in the Kingdom.
This system is already in place on a number of UAE-based airlines, with Etihad, Emirates, Fly Dubai, Air Arabia, and Air Arabia Abu Dhabi offering transit visas of 48 to 96 hours along with plane tickets.
On Article 6.8.2 further states that, “In recognition of the seriousness of the issue, the Carrier hereby undertakes to operate in line with the Commission’s directives and to provide accurate and reliable schedule and flight numbers for the entire operation at least 30 days before the commencement of each leg of the airlift and shall liaise with the Commission on the number of pilgrims to be airlifted directly to Madinah in the first leg of the operation.” This shows the strategic importance of Hajj airlift in Hajj operations.
The state’s Muslim pilgrims’ boards, on the other hand, must ensure that pilgrims are mobilized to camps strictly based on allotted time to avoid cases of missed slots. The state agencies must improve on its communications channels to pilgrims during hajj airlift to avoid unnecessary delays. States has no option than to comply with NAHCON directives especially during Hajj airlift.