‘Indigenous carriers can airlift all Nigerian pilgrims’

Med-View Airline, one of the indigenous carriers airlifting intending pilgrims to Saudi Arabia has set in motion machinery to convey over 3000 pilgrims from Kaduna State.

The inaugural flight of Kaduna pilgrims would depart Kaduna International Airport today to Madinah in Saudi Arabia.

The airline has positioned three aircraft- a Boeing 747-400, 767-300 and 777 for the airlift of pilgrims.

The Managing Director/Chief Executive of Med-View Airline, Alhaji Muneer Bankole who spoke with newsmen after the arrival of the carrier’s 747 aircraft to Kaduna preparatory to the exercise, said indigenous carriers had the capacity to airlift all Nigerian pilgrims to the holy land.

The MD said, “Today we have a strong partner. Max Air has about three airplanes which carry almost 500 passengers each. Med-View has three which carries about 1000 per day. If you put all these together and multiply by the number of days we have, it is less for the Nigerian carriers to carry. We are always open to competition which makes us to believe our partner, our friend from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.”