ISLAMABAD: Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) has announced that its Haj operation will formally commence on Sunday (today), during which more than 55,000 pilgrims will be transported to the Holy Land through 191 flights from across the country.
A PIA spokesperson said that under the government scheme, 49,000 pilgrims will travel, while over 6,000 pilgrims through private Haj group operators will also be facilitated via PIA flights.
He also noted that the first flight of the Haj operation, PK-747, will depart from Sialkot for Madinah on April 19 at 1:55am, carrying over 390 pilgrims.
Under the Haj operation, PIA will transport over 15,400 pilgrims from Islamabad to Saudi Arabia through 46 flights.
From Karachi, over 15,000 pilgrims will be flown through 55 flights; from Lahore, 12,377 pilgrims through 34 flights; from Faisalabad, 3,680 pilgrims through 23 flights; from Multan, 5,383 pilgrims through 13 flights; from Sialkot, 2,075 pilgrims through five flights; and from Quetta, 4,487 pilgrims through 15 Haj flights.
The first Haj flight from Quetta will depart on April 21 at 5:45am with over 300 pilgrims.
Published in Dawn, April 19th, 2026
