PIA Hajj operation 2011 was completed by bringing back over 110,000 Hujjaj to Pakistan. This was stated by PIA spokesman, here on Saturday. PIA spokesman said that PIA was allotted an exclusive bay this year for processing its flights, which helped in the PIA post Hajj operation to become normal on the fifth day. Congestion at Jeddah Airport where 80,000 to 100,000 passengers arrive at the same time for their return journey through 74 international carriers caused initial delay in the departure of earlier flights.
For continuous flow of information and facilitation of Hujjaj, a team of senior officials was deputed whose duty was to remain available among the passengers, while electronic flight information display was installed at remote check-in area where updated information about PIA was displayed. No other airline had installed such flight display monitor. In order to ensure PIA visibility, all PIA employees working at Hajj terminal were wearing fluorescent jackets "PIA HAJJ DUTY". Hujjaj were guided right from bus arrival area to the boarding area by a group of senior representatives of the airline.
Furthermore, PIA scouts equipped with loud speakers made important announcements for passengers' convenience. A special team was dedicated for filling 100 percent immigration cards in order to facilitate Hujjaj through the process. PIA also used metal detectors to pre-screen Hujjaj before the GID security check in order to prevent from unnecessary hassle and delay at GID security counters.
During its post-Hajj operation, PIA carried 110,726 Hujjaj through 273 flights to Pakistan. 96,200 Hujjaj were brought back through 266 special flights from Jeddah. Among these, 22 flights with 10,884 Hajjis arrived in Karachi, 19,495 in Lahore through 39 flights, 19,766 flown to Islamabad from Jeddah through 40 flights, 62 flights carried 18,600 Hajjis to Peshawar, 16,058 Hujjaj arrived in Quetta through 79 flights, 3,503 transported through seven flights to Sialkot and 8,432 brought back to Multan through 17 flights. The national airline also carried over 14,000 Hujjaj on regular scheduled flights and chartered flights to Pakistan, PIA spokesman concluded.-PR
Comments
Comments are closed for this article.