Saudi Arabia airline to operate flying taxis to transport pilgrims to Makkah

Saudi Arabia is planning to launch air taxis to transport pilgrims for the Islamic Hajj and umrah pilgrimages, in the latest innovative technological development to be implemented in the Kingdom.

According to the state-run Saudi Press Agency (SPA), authorities will enable the operation of air taxis to transport pilgrims from King Abdulaziz Airport in the coastal city of Jeddah to hotels in the Islamic holy city of Makkah. The logistics of the air taxis’ flights will reportedly be handled by Saudia, the Kingdom’s national airline.

The electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft have been developed by the Volocopter company and Saudi authorities in recent years, and are set to serve as a less expensive, more versatile, and environmentally-friendly alternative to other forms of transportation and aircraft, such as helicopters.

Air taxi test flights have already been conducted last year in the developing Saudi megacity project of Neom, which – in cooperation with Volocopter – is set to use similar aircraft for urban transport in the near future.

The use of the innovate form of transport for the Hajj and umrah pilgrimages was reportedly announced last year by Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Transport, Saleh Bin Nasser Al Jasser, who said that the aircraft would be tested in coming years specifically for those purposes.

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