Malaysia Airlines’ hajj and umrah service Amal to start chartered flights from China to Saudi Arabia

Malaysia Airlines’ Amal, the dedicated service for hajj and umrah, will start chartered flights from China to Saudi Arabia via Kuala Lumpur.

Amal will work with Tahira Air and Kawan International Travel to offer flights and tours to Jeddah and Madinah from Ningxia and other provinces in China, it said in a statement on October 23. The companies did not say when the first flights will take off. 

The new service follows the liberalisation of Saudi Arabia’s tourism industry.

The kingdom started issuing tourist visas on September 28 that also cover umrah for Muslim travelers.

49 eligible countries can apply for electronic visas while citizens from other nations must apply separately. The 49 eligible countries are mainly in Europe, North America, Asia and Oceania, including China, and three Muslim-majority countries Brunei, Malaysia, and Kazakhstan.

Saudi authorities said it issued 23,715 tourist visas in the first ten days, with 7,391 issued to Chinese tourists, the biggest group.

Malaysia Airlines launched Amal in February this year in a bid to capture more hajj and umrah passengers from neighbouring countries.

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