Meeqat
The meeqat is a designated area around Makkah from where any pilgrim travelling to Makkah must enter the state of Ihram. These are different depending on which part of the world you are travelling in from.
Before crossing the Meeqat you should verbally state your intention.
For Hajj at-Tamattu you will state your intention for Umrah only as:
لبيك اللهم عمرة
Labbayk allahuma Umrah
For Hajj al-Qiran you will say:
لبيك اللهم حجا وعمرة
Labbayk allahuma Hajj wa Umrah
For Hajj al Ifrad you will say:
لبيك اللهم حجا
Labbayk allahuma Hajj
When you are doing it on behalf of someone else:
(say name here)...لبيك عن
Labbayk an...(say name here)
If you are weak or elderly or ill and feel you may have to exit the state of Ihram before completing the rites, then say:
وإن حبسني حابس فمحلي حيث حبستني
After passing the meeqat you must don the Ihram.
Praying Salah on a Airplane
It is an obligation upon every Muslim to pray at the time of prayer.
“Verily, between a man and idolatry and unbelief is abandoning the prayer.”
Prophet Muhammad ﷺ
On the day of judgement the prayer will be the first thing which one must answer for. The Prophet ﷺ said:
"The first matter that the slave will be brought to account for on the Day of Judgment is the prayer. If it is sound, then the rest of his deeds will be sound. And if it is bad, then the rest of his deeds will be bad."
Tabrani
While travelling you are permitted to combine Dhuhr with Asr and Maghrib and Esha. It is better to shorten Dhuhr, Asr, Esha from four rakahs to two rakahs
With such ease and exemption from Allah, a Muslim must ensure they pray even when they are travelling. But on an airplane people find it difficult and at times miss the prayer. The prayer is still obligatory on an airplane so here is some guidance on how to pray on a plane.
How to pray on an Airplane
Use the in-plane entertainment system to understand which direction the Qibla is. After that find a suitable empty spot in the airplane to pray. It is best to ask airline staff before you pray so they know not to disturb you. Saudi Airlines has a specific area for prayer.
If the airplane turns while you are praying you do not have to change the direction you are facing.
For non-obligatory prayers, you can offer them in your seat however fardh prayers should be offered standing unless you are unable due to illness or there is turbulence and are not permitted to stand due to the seat belt sign or due to something which prevents you. 4
4 If the time for prayer comes and the plane is still in the air and there is the fear that the time for prayer will end before it lands, then the scholars are agreed that the prayer must be offered in whatever manner one can, bowing, prostrating and facing the qiblah if possible, because Allah says (interpretation of the meaning): “So keep your duty to Allah and fear Him as much as you can” [al-Taghaabun 64:16]
And the Prophet ﷺ said: “If I tell you to do something, do as much of it as you can.” Agreed upon.
But if it is known that the plane will land before the time for prayer ends, and there will be enough time to offer the prayer or the prayer is one which can be joined with another – such as Zuhr which may be joined with ‘Asr, or Maghrib which may be joined with ‘Isha’ – and it is known that the plane will land before the time for the second prayer ends and there will be enough time to offer the prayers, then the majority of scholars are of the view that it is permissible to offer the prayers in the plane, because it is obligatory to offer them when the time for prayer begins, in whatever manner one can, as stated above. This is the correct view. Fataawa al-Lajnah al-Daa’imah (8/120)
