The fare is $490 round trip, comparable with other charter fares to Britain.

Charter fares are expected to rise more sharply than those of scheduled flights because fuel accounts for a greater proportion of charter airlines' costs.

Several West African countries offer cheap charter flights to France, and charter fares from Morocco can be incredibly cheap if you're lucky enough to find a seat.

Charter fares can work out as much as £150 return cheaper than scheduled ones (though watch out for in-flight extras on charter services), even though the leg room in economy on long-haul charter flights is often more generous than on scheduled services.

He suggests charter fares should be set at two-thirds of regular IATA fares, but points out that the Haj has higher costs than other charters because two empty flights are required to return the aircraft to India and to position the aircraft in Arabia for the pilgrims' return journey.