Hajj 2024: Pilgrims to use flying taxis

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will for the first time deploy flying taxis, also known as volocopters, to transport pilgrims during this year’s Hajj season, the kingdom’s Minister of Transport and Logistic Services, Saleh al-Jasser has announced.

According to various social media portals connected to the management of the affairs of the two holy mosques (Haramain Sharifain), the desert kingdom had concluded plans to test the flying taxis and drones.

They will transport pilgrims from King Abdul-Aziz Airport, Jeddah to hotels in Makkah. They will be managed by the kingdom’s national airline, Saudia.

 Al-Jasser is also quoted by AlArabiya News as saying, “There is currently a lot of competition among various transportation companies to provide a practical product in the upcoming years. So, we must be at the front in order to benefit from these services and for the Hajj season to have the largest share of it.” 

The development came as Saudi Arabia began receiving pilgrims for this year’s Hajj which is expected to fall between start on June 14. The first batch of pilgrims to arrive in Madinah were from India, Malaysia Afghanistan, Bangladeshi and Pakistan.