Agencies asked to buy hajj tickets immediately

Biman Bangladesh Airlines on Wednesday called Hajj agencies to buy tickets immediately as 16,000 seats still remain unsold warning that no additional slot will be allotted by Saudi authorities this year.

“All Hajj agents are requested to procure their required tickets immediately to avoid complexity to transport Hajj Pilgrims at last moment,” said a press release of Biman.

Last year, the national flag carrier had to cancel 24 scheduled hajj flights as agencies were reluctant to send the pilgrims before much ahead of the Hajj.

According to the release till today 45,779 tickets have been issued while approximately 16,000 seats are still available for the hajj flights between 24 July and 10 August 2018.

“We would like to carry all our intending pilgrims, we don’t want to leave anyone behind here. For that, we are urging all hajj agencies to buy tickets in favour of their registered pilgrims soon,” Biman’s general manager (public relations) Shakil Meraj told BSS.

Biman Bangladesh Airlines, he said, is very cautious this time to check any kind of complexity in hajj flight operation as Saudi authorities has already declared that they won’t be able to provide any additional flight to Biman Bangladesh airlines this year before the Hajj.

Last year, Biman Bangladesh airlines had been able to manage additional slot from Saudi authority to operate hajj flights after cancelled numbers of hajj flights due to scarcity of passengers.

This year, Biman Bangladesh Airlines will transport approximately 63,600 pilgrims between 14 July and 15 August by 187 flights, Biman’s official sources said.

Biman started selling tickets for this year’s Hajj flights from 27 May on “first come first serve basis”.