Flynas Completes Pilgrims Airlift, Commends Tinubu, NAHCON

Flynas has completed the airlift of 2026 Hajj pilgrims from Saudi Arabia to Nigeria in two weeks and thanked President Bola Tinubu and the Nigerian Hajj Commission (NAHCON) for their support in ensuring a seamless operation.

The airline airlifted the last batch of Kebbi State pilgrims back to Nigeria last Saturday, officially marking the end of this year’s operation.

A statement released by the Flynas Media Office, Abuja, and signed by Mr Mahmood Muhammad Abande, yesterday, explained that the airline operated 32 flights to Nigeria in the inbound operation that started on June 4, 2026.

Abande quoted the managing director/CEO of First Planet Limited and Flynas General Sales Agent (GSA) in Nigeria, Alhaji Umar Kaila, as saying that the airline transported 11,832 pilgrims from Kebbi, Kaduna, Lagos, Ogun, Niger, Nasarawa and Osun States back to Nigeria.

A breakdown of the return journey showed that Flynas operated nine flights from King Abdulaziz International Airport, Jeddah to Sir Ahmadu Bello International Airport, Birnin Kebbi; six flights to Bola Tinubu International Airport, Minna; eight flights to Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos; five flights to Hassan Usman Katsina International Airport, Kaduna; and two flights each to Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja and Gateway International Airport, Abeokuta.

The management expressed its gratitude to President Tinubu for providing the airline with all the necessary support to conduct a hitch-free 2026 hajj operation and assured him of the firm’s readiness and commitment to continue serving Nigerian pilgrims better in the future.

The airline also thanked the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON), under the leadership of Ambassador Isma’il Abbas Yusuf, for its excellent coordination of the successful Hajj operation.

“The professionalism, commitment and dedication displayed by the NAHCON leadership under His Excellency, Ambassador Ismail Abbas Yusuf, and his team of dedicated staff, is unprecedented. Those excellent efforts made it possible to record a seamless outbound and inbound Hajj operation,” Mr Kaila said.

Kaila also thanked the management of Flynas in Saudi Arabia for giving First Planet Limited the opportunity to serve as its GSA in Nigeria for more than one decade, diligently representing its interests while providing excellent services to Nigerian pilgrims.

He also appreciated the maximum cooperation and coordination of the pilgrims by the state governors and the chief executive officers of the pilgrims’ boards, agencies and commissions of Kebbi, Lagos, Nasarawa, Osun, Kaduna, Ogun and Niger States.

Kaila said the airline had deployed six wide-body Airbus A330 aircraft for the 2026 hajj operation, explaining that four have a seating capacity of 430 each, while the remaining two have a seating capacity of 345 each.