MKN USED FLIGHTS TO SINGAPORE AND JAKARTA IN EVACUATION

JEDDAH, Feb 10 (Bernama) -- The National Security Council (MKN) used new
strategy in evacuating students from Egypt by using Saudi Airlines flights to
Singapore and Jakarta.

Its secretary Mohamed Thajudeen Abdul Wahab said 150 students were whisked from
Jeddah on Saudi Airlines flights Tuesday night.

"MKN prepared four coaches from Changi to take those from Johor and Melaka and
will send the students up to Ipoh," he told Bernama here Wednesday.

He said a Saudi Airlines flight will leave Jeddah at 9.25 Wednesday night with
104 students bound for Jakarta.

They are expected to arrive at 11am Thursday and leave Jakarta for Kuala Lumpur
on an AirAsia flight at 2pm.

Over 650 students are expected to leave on a Malaysia Airlines chartered flight
and a Malaysia Airlines commercial flight.

Thajudeen said the others will take two Saudi Airlines bound for Singapore and
Jakarta.

Jakarta was chosen as AirAsia has six flights from Jakarta to Kuala Lumpur and
hopes to bring all the students home by Feb 13.

Asked whether he has a plan B, Thajudeen said that he has none except completing
the evacuation one day earlier.

He hopes the Saudi Arabian government would add two more flights using two B747
capable of ferrying 800 students to speed up evacuation.
--BERNAMA