MALAPPURAM: The impasse in Qatar has become an unexpected blow to nearly a thousand expatriates and Umrah pilgrims from Malabar flying from the Calicut International Airport with a stopover in Doha. According to travel agencies, hundreds of Umrah pilgrims who took this route to Saudi Arabia have been stuck there as their Doha connected return flights stand cancelled after Saudis severed ties. As there are no direct flights from here to Jeddah which is a major destination for expatriates in the kingdom and Umrah pilgrims from Karipur, a majority of Saudi-bound passengers have relied on connected services through Doha and other Gulf cities.
“Nearly 300 Umrah pilgrims have been stuck in Saudi port city due to the cancellation of services by Qatar Airways. They are forced to approach other airlines for return tickets. As this is the peak Ramzan season, they also have to pay around 50 percent more for a ticket,” said Shabeer Babu, deputy manager, Alhind Travels in Kottakkal. As the vacation season is all set to begin in Gulf, the crisis would deepen further if the issue remains unresolved.
The Doha-bound daily flight of Qatar Airways from Karipur has also lost half of its passengers due to this. The airline had to fly with a mere 62 passengers on Wednesday after 134 passengers cancelled their tickets. The flight usually carries 170-190 passengers daily to Doha from here. Besides, the UAE national carrier Etihad Airways has cancelled all of its three daily connected services to Doha from here. These services were a great relief to the Saudi-bound passengers who were using this route to connect to Jeddah. The airlines have also cut the luggage capacity by half in order to fly long due to the ban above Qatari sky. Several expats in the district have also cancelled their connected journey through Doha.
