Spanning 74 days to bring pilgrims from around the world to the Holy Sites

Saudia Group announces its operational plan for Hajj Season 2024, aimed at facilitating the transportation of pilgrims from around the world, streamlining all procedures and providing top-notch services at various service locations. Over 1.2 million seats have been allocated through optimal investment in its fleet of more than 150 aircraft, distinguished by operational efficiency and quality services. This initiative is in line with the directives of Saudi leadership, supported by collaboration with various entities involved in serving Hajj pilgrims.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240509933076/en/

Saudia Group announces Hajj Season 2024 Plan (Graphic: Business Wire)

The operational period for the national flag carrier during Hajj Season 2024, encompassing both inbound and outbound stages, spans 74 days starting from May 9th. Saudia Group has proactively formed specialized teams distributed among performance monitoring, terminal operations, follow-up, and coordination with other sectors. Additionally, operational resources have been allocated across the lounges of King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah, and an emergency plan has been developed in collaboration with relevant stakeholders. Furthermore, numerous virtual simulations have been conducted across both Jeddah and Madinah international airports.

Saudia Group will welcome Hajj pilgrims through five domestic airports, including Jeddah, Madinah, Riyadh, Dammam, and Yanbu, with more than 11,000 frontline employees and aircraft maintenance technicians, ensuring smooth flow of movement at the airports as well as operational efficiency. Additionally, 120,000 pilgrims will be served through the “Makkah Route” initiative which is designed to streamline the immigration process for pilgrims to Makkah. Saudia will also continue its “Luggage First” service, and 270,000 bags will be handled as well as 240,000 Zamzam bottles.

Amer Al Khushail, CEO of Saudia Hajj and Umrah, said: "The national flag carrier of Saudi Arabia is honored to continue its pivotal role in serving pilgrims, ensuring their spiritual journey is enriched in line with the objectives of Vision 2030. Each year, we integrate the efforts across all sectors as we strive to enhance pilgrims’ satisfaction by implementing initiatives that streamline arrival procedures and airport check-in processes.”

"In preparation for the Hajj season, Saudia is committed to signing agreements with government delegations and travel agents, to ensure providing appropriate seat capacity for markets with high demand across over a hundred destinations in four continents. We offer seamless bookings through Saudia’s offices and online channels, we have also designed awareness campaigns regarding luggage acceptance criteria," added Al Khashil.

Saudia offers a number of initiatives to enhance the pilgrims’ experience. These begin with the issuance of outbound and inbound boarding passes. With a commitment to seamless communication, Saudia's multilingual staff, proficient in more than 30 languages, ensure efficient service delivery at the highest standards. The airline also offers diverse meal options onboard, catering to all tastes.

Saudia aircraft have been specially equipped, featuring screens that will display announcements of Miqat (a boundary for pilgrims to start intent for the performance of Ḥajj), and prayer times. These screens also offer over 300,000 minutes of Islamic content aimed at educating pilgrims on rituals and Kingdom regulations, developed in collaboration with the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah.

Saudia prioritizes accessibility, providing transport for individuals with disabilities, along with medical stretchers and oxygen equipment onboard as needed. Moreover, Saudia continues its luggage collection service from pilgrims' residences, streamlining travel procedures for return flights after the pilgrimage rites.

About Saudia Group

Saudia Group is one of the largest aviation conglomerates in the MENA region. The Group drives industry development with its 12 subsidiaries and strategic business units, and offers world-class air transport, cargo services, ground services, logistics, maintenance, catering, private aviation, real estate, training, and medical services.

Its most prominent subsidiary is Saudi Arabian Airlines “Saudia”, the national flag carrier of Saudi Arabia and a leading airline in the Middle East with a fleet of 140 aircraft and servicing more than 100 destinations to and from the Jeddah (JDH) and Riyadh (RUH) airports.

Saudia Group also caters to diverse passenger segments through entities like flyadeal for economy travelers, Saudia Private for elite travelers, and the Saudia Royal Fleet for the Saudi Arabia Royal Family. Saudia Technic, the Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO) division, provides aircraft maintenance and manufacturing across continents, operating across the MENA region. Saudia Academy, the training arm of the group, is the largest aviation training academy in the MENA region.

To complement its aviation services, the group offers seamless logistics and cargo-handling solutions through Saudia Cargo and Saudi Logistics Services (SAL). Additionally, catering and ground-handling services are delivered through Catrion and Saudi Ground Services Co. (SGS). To address the specific medical needs of the aviation sector, Medical Fakeeh specializes in aviation-focused medical services, while the Saudi Arabian Real Estate Development manages and invests in real estate projects for Saudia Group.

About Saudia

Saudia (Saudia Airlines) is the national flag carrier of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Established in 1945, the company has grown to become one of the Middle East’s largest airlines.

Saudia has invested significantly in upgrading its aircraft and currently operates one of the youngest fleet. The airline serves an extensive global route network covering around 100 destinations across four continents, including all 28 domestic airports in Saudi Arabia.

A member of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and the Arab Air Carriers Organization (AACO), Saudia has also been a member airline in SkyTeam, the second largest alliance, since 2012.

Saudia was recently awarded the "World Class Airline 2024" for the third consecutive year at The APEX Official Airline Ratings™ awards. Saudia has also advanced 11 places in the Skytrax airlines ranking of the World Best Airlines 2023. The Airline also ranked top among global airlines for best on-time performance (OTP) according to a report by the Cirium.

For more information on Saudia, please visit www.saudia.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240509933076/en/