Hajj flight with 419 pilgrims off to Jeddah from Ctg

First Hajj flight from Chittagong carrying 419 Bangladeshi pilgrims left Hazrat Shah Amanat International Airport for Saudi Arabia at 11.45pm on Friday.

Civil aviation and tourism minister Rashed Khan Menon inaugurated the flight.

Menon said this year 14,700 pilgrims will go to Saudi Arabia from Chittagong. Of them, dedicated flights of Biman Bangladesh Airlines will carry 6,285 pilgrims. The rest of them have to go in scheduled fights.

The flights for Madinah will likely to be operated on August 7 and 8.

Some 127,198 pilgrims will perform Hajj from Bangladesh this year under government and private managements. Some 37,000 pilgrims have already reached Makkah.

On July 24, the first Hajj flight of Biman carrying 418 Bangladeshi pilgrims took off from Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka. The Hajj flights will be operated till August 26.

The return flight will start on September 6 and continue till October 5.