The General Authority for Civil Aviation (GACA) in Saudi Arabia has extended the landing permits of Nigerian Hajj carriers from July 4 to 6.
The spokeswoman for the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON), Fatima Usara, declared this on Monday in a statement.
She explained that the reason for the extension was due to the excessive flight cancellations and flight delays, and mentioned that at least nine flights were cancelled from June 10 to 13.
She attributed the cancellations to reasons ranging from the inability of some states’ pilgrims boards to secure basic travel allowance (BTA) for pilgrims, insufficient funds for visas and unavailability of PCR test results.
“From Monday, July 4, the extension will commence to July 6 for one of the airlines whereas July 4 and 5 have been approved for the other airline,” the spokesperson said.
“NAHCON sought the extension to enable it to transport its remaining pilgrims into the Kingdom for the 2022 Hajj. Out of the 43,008 pilgrims expected to arrive in Saudi Arabia from Nigeria, 27,359, inclusive of 527 staff as well as committees and board members, under the government quota have been conveyed. Similarly, over 5,000 out of the 8,097 Tour Operators’ pilgrims with valid visas were moved through scheduled flights and other arrangements,” she further disclosed.
Ms. Usara promised that no pilgrim would be left behind provided they had valid travel documents.
