Haj flights begin from Peshawar

PESHAWAR: The Haj flight operation has begun as the first flight carrying pilgrims to Saudi Arabia took off from the Bacha Khan International Airport here on Saturday.

The Airblue flight took off from the Bacha Khan International Airport airport at 4pm, marking the beginning of the Haj flights operation from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Though the Shaheen Air was also scheduled to take the first flight off at 11am today but the schedule was changed after the airline failed to pay outstanding dues against the company.

The first flight of Airblue took off with 170 pilgrims onboard for its destination Medina in Saudi Arabia.

The pilgrims first gathered at the Haji Camp in Phase-7, Hayatabad, and then taken via special buses to the airport.

The police mobile vans were escorting the vehicles of the pilgrims. Provincial Caretaker Minister for Education, Social Welfare and Religious Affairs Dr Sara Safdar was the chief guest and saw off the pilgrims at the airport.