I was told a story about flying an entire African village (livestock and all) to Mecca – how plausible is it?

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A family member of mine was an airline pilot for many years, mostly from the 1960s-1980s. He flew a lot in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, for Lufthansa among others. He told a story about being the pilot on a charter flight from someplace in Africa to Saudi Arabia. The flight was chartered by an organization which sponsored Muslims who otherwise wouldn’t be able to to go on their pilgrimage to Mecca. He said he was puzzled when he first boarded the plane, because it was almost completely empty (no seats). This turned out to be because they were taking the entire population of a small village, and also had to bring along some of their livestock and other possessions so they wouldn’t get stolen or taken while they were gone.

Does this sound at all plausible?

(edited for grammar)

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