Flight for haj starts March 15

JAKARTA (JP): The first Jakarta haj pilgrims will fly out on March 15, Governor Surjadi Soedirdja has said.

Two flights a day would transport the 23,790 pilgrims this year, he said Friday when installing the pilgrims' 100 official escorts.

"With two flights a day, each carrying 480 people, the flights to the Holy land should end on April 10," Surjadi said.

All the pilgrims will leave in Boeing 747 airplanes from the Halim Perdanakusuma military air base in East Jakarta.

This year Jakarta will send 23,790 pilgrims, 693 more than in 1996.

Surjadi asked the official escorts to take care of the pilgrims properly. (ste/sur)