A new agreement was signed for the transport of Egyptian pilgrims this year, Samir Embabi, regional manager for EgyptAir in Saudi Arabia and the Gulf, told Arab News on Thursday.

He said negotiations between Egypt's national carrier and the Saudi General Authority for Civil Aviation (GACA) were constructive and will enable pilgrims from Egypt to land in Madinah, rather than having to travel by road from the Haj Terminal at King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah.

He said those eligible to travel from Egypt would include pilgrims who have been chosen by lottery, tourist Hajis, and those coming through various societies.

“Flights to and from Madinah will run smoothly after we resolved our differences,” he added.

Embabi said EgyptAir has come up with a plan to organize 327 Haj flights, transporting about 85,000 pilgrims from Egypt. They include 181 flights to Jeddah, 107 to Madinah and 29 to various other destinations in the Kingdom, an increase of 50 flights over last year.

He praised Saudi authorities for their cooperation and said the two sides are working to maintain distinguished services for pilgrims and visitors to the two countries.

Embabi said after EgyptAir Haj flights to Madinah were halted, the airline increased flights to Jeddah to four daily instead of three.

A row between the two sides flared up about 18 months ago when the Egyptian civil aviation authority turned down a request from three Saudi budget airlines to fly direct from Madinah to Cairo. The companies include Sama, Nasair and Al-Wafeer.

The authority cited a fear of economic losses as their reason for turning down the request.

In retaliation, GACA stopped EgyptAir flights to Madinah. GACA also asked the airline to seek permission before attempting to fly to the holy city.

Embabi said that in the past, there were seven to 10 EgyptAir flights daily between Cairo and Madinah.