By; Abdull-Azeez Ahmed Kadir.
The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria NAHCON has completed the airlift of all Nigerian pilgrims back home from Saudi Arabia, ahead of the August 3rd deadline it set for the inbound flight.
NAHCON on Monday 31 July beats it deadline with the airlift of 302 pilgrims, 16 officials by AZMAN Airline flight AZM2361 from Jeddah to Kaduna in total of 183 flights.
The Chairman and CEO of NAHCON, Alhaji Zikrullah Kunle Hassan expressed appreciation and gratitude to Nigerians for their tremendous support for the Commission during the just concluded Haji operation.
Hassan stated this during an address to the last set of Nigerian Pilgrims at the King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia before their departure to Nigeria.
He acknowledged the assistance of the President and Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces, Ahmed Bola Tinubu and Vice President, Alhaji Kashim Shettima to the successful organization of the 2023 Hajj stressing that for the intervention of the Vice President which enabled the Commission to transfer its trapped funds to Saudi Arabia and also persuade the General Authority on Civil Aviation (GACA) to allocate more slots to Nigerian Airlines.
A statement by Mousa Ubandawaki Deputy Director Information and Publication NAHCON said the airlift on Monday, marks the conclusion of the in-bound flight of Nigerian pilgrims with the final airlift of 298 Kaduna pilgrims, 1 Bauchi State Pilgrim and 16 officials by Azman Airlines, coming four days ahead of the original date.
He added that the second phase of the operation which began on 4th July, 2023 after the completion of the Hajj rites with the airlift of Sokoto State Pilgrims by Flynas was a rollercoaster of challenges and emotions which was amplified by the non-provision of slots to the Nigerian Carriers by the Saudi’s General Authority on Civil Aviation (GACA).
But after the resolution of the impasse following the intervention of the Nigerian Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, he said, it has been smooth-sailing.
It would be recalled that August 3rd was initially fixed as the final day of operation but the injection of additional aircraft by Max Air and Flynas had helped to ease the tension and increase the tempo of the operation. With the operation of the 183rd shuttle flight brings to an end, the 2023 Hajj Operations.
