The Nigerian government has approved Flynas and three other airlines for the transportation of 2025 Hajj pilgrims to Saudi Arabia.
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON), Professor Abdullahi Saleh Usman, announced this in Saudi Arabia on Sunday.
The NAHCON chief said the three other airlines selected are AirPeace, Max Air and UMZA Aviation Services Limited.
Flynas is the biggest and the most experienced of the selected airlines, and it has been airlifting Nigerian pilgrims to the holy land in the last 10 consecutive years successfully without hitches.
The four air carriers were selected out of the 11 airline companies that applied for the 2025 airlift, a statement by a spokesperson of the commission, Fatima Sanda Usara, had said.
Flynas— a Saudi Arabia designated Nigerian hajj air carrier — and the three other carriers were screened and shortlisted by a team of 32 members — drawn from different government agencies — that was inaugurated by the NAHCON chairman on 26 November 2024.
The commission also approved Aglow Aviation Support Services Limited, Cargozeal Technology Limited and Qualla Investment Limited for excess cargo operation.
In his reaction, the Managing Director, First Planet Travels and General Sales Agent (GSA) of Flynas, Alhaji Umar Kaila, has assured the intending pilgrims of excellent service delivery in 2025 hajj in line with the airline’s standards.
“Like we have been doing in the last 10 years, Flynas is fully ready to deploy its international expertise, credentialed workforce force and well-maintained fleets to provide excellent services to the intending guests of Allah this year. We have perfected plans to airlift pilgrims to and from Saudi Arabia in the most honourable, seamless, comfortable and timely manner in line with global best practice,” Mr Kaila said on Sunday.
The Flynas chief also assured all stakeholders that include NAHCON, state pilgrims boards/commissions, aviation agencies, among others of a robust collaboration for the success of this year’s pilgrims transportation.
In 2024 hajj, NAHCON allocated Flynas about 20,000 pilgrims from Kebbi, Lagos, Sokoto, Zamfara, Yobe, Borno, Osun, Ogun, and Niger states.
With over 80 local adhoc workforce, Flynas has been in Nigeria since 2014
as part of the Bilateral Air Services Agreement (BASA) between Nigeria and Saudi Arabia.
