Dhaka, April 29 -- The Hajj pilgrimage season for 2025 has officially begun as the first flight carrying Bangladeshi pilgrims departed from Dhaka early Tuesday morning.

Operated by Saudia Airlines, the national carrier of Saudi Arabia, Flight SV-803 took off from Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport at 2:11am, transporting 398 pilgrims. The Boeing 777-300 is scheduled to land at King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah at 6:00am local time, following a flight of approximately seven hours.

On this inaugural day, a total of 4,180 pilgrims will depart for Saudi Arabia via 10 separate flights. Of these, eight flights will land in Jeddah, while the remaining two will arrive at Prince Mohammad bin Abdulaziz International Airport in Ma...