By Abdulwahab Abdulah

The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) has disclosed that it had completed airlifting a total of 76, 000 Nigerian pilgrims who participated in this year holy pilgrimage to Makkah and Madinah back to the country.

In a statement by its head of media, Mr. Uba Mana, the commission, noted that the last and final flight of Kabo Air which departed King Abdulaziz International Airport, Jeddah around 12noon last Monday, conveyed 412 Kwara State pilgrims and 88 officials.

According to the statement, the return journey began on Thursday, October 9, 2014 with the expectation that the airlifting exercise would be completed in 27 days, but was completed ahead of the expectation within 26 days with 138 flights.

The statement added that “ a total of 76,000 Nigerian pilgrims participated in this year’s Hajj.”

It further stated:”During the outbound flight (September 6 to 28, 2014) to Saudi Arabia, pilgrims were airlifted in 145 flights through airports spread across Nigeria. For the return journey however, all the 37 countries including Nigeria that participated in the Hajj exited the Kingdom through the King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah. As a result, the Commission, throughout the in-bound airlifting, maintained a strict policy of “first to arrive Saudi Arabia, first to return to Nigeria.”

The Commission therefore acknowledged the support of the Federal Government, the National Assembly, the state pilgrims welfare agencies, the private tour operators and all pilgrims for making the operation a resounding success.