Dhaka Zia International Airport

Zia International Airport is the largest airport in Bangladesh. It started operation in 1981, and was named after Bangladesh's former president, Ziaur Rahman. It is the hub of Biman Bangladesh Airlines.

Nearly 52% of the country's international and domestic arrivals and departures occur through Zia Airport, while country's second largest international airport at Chittagong handles about 17% of the passengers. About 3.8 million international and 0.8 million domestic passengers and 105,000 tons of freight and mail annually pass through Zia International Airport.

Zia Airport has terminal buildings, hangars, technical areas, a freight village (warehouse), and other modern equipment for handling aircraft. It connects almost all the major cities of the world with Bangladesh.

Outside View of The Airport Terminal Building

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Aerial View of the Cargo Area

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Inside the terminal building

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Duty Free Area

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V.I.P. Section of the Airport

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Chittagong Shah Amanat International Airport

Shah Amanat International Airport serves Bangladesh's southeastern port city of Chittagong. Flights from the airport chiefly serve South Asia and the Middle East. Airlines serving Shah Amanat include Biman Bangladesh, GMG Airlines, Phuket Airlines, Singapore Airlines and Thai Airways.


Terminal Building

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Inside the Terminal Building

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Sylhet Osmani International Airport

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Jessore Airport

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Nice work Tmac, great collection. Didn't know sylhet had an international airport.

Renovation of Cox's Bazar Airport runway starts

Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, State Minister for Civil Aviation and Tourism, announced the government's intention to develop Cox's Bazar as one of the top tourist spots. The State Minister was speaking as the chief guest on the occasion of the inauguration of full-fledged renovation work and setting up of lighting system at the Cox's Bazar Airport runway on February 23. He gave directives to the concerned officials to send specialist team to the Sonadia Island near Cox's Bazar to work out a plan for the development of tourism.
Besides, he announced to construction of an exclusive zone for foreign tourists at Jhaubithi along the seashore adjacent to the Parjatan Corporation's Hotel Shaibal. The 23.65 crore taka project will be implemented to give a layer of asphalt on the 6,775 feet long and 90 feet wide runway and introduction of the lighting system to enhance tourism facilities and to make the shrimp fry transportation smoother. The project is expected to be completed by the end of July. Once the project is implemented a F-28 aircraft can take off and land with passengers and goods in its full capacity at the airport.
At present Biman can carry only 28 passengers to and from Cox's Bazar. When the work is over, a middle-sized international airliner can also land at the airport, Chief Engineer of Civil Avia-tion Md Ansar Ali said. The airport has never ever experienced any sort of full-fledged renovation work since it came into being in 1956 as a domestic airport. At present, flights of the Biman and cargo flights carrying shrimp fries are to take off and land at the airport with much risk. Air Commodore AKM Harun Chowdhury, Chairman, Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB), chaired the function organised on the occasion of repair works while Salahuddin Ahmed, State Minister for Communications, was present as the special guest.
Chief Engineer of the Civil Aviation Ansar Ali said the cost of the runway layering was estimated at Tk 16 crore and nine lakh while the introduction of the lighting system at Tk seven crore and five lakh. Besides, new control tower of the airport and fire service stations will also be constructed. The renovation work will start during the current month of February.

http://www.bangladeshmonitor.net/aviation_story.php?recordID=330

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GMG starts daily flights to Cox's Bazar
March 01, 2006
Dhaka : GMG Airlines is operating seven days a week to Cox's Bazar - three days direct from Dhaka and four days via Chittagong from February 22. The inaugural direct flight departed Dhaka at 1210 hours on February 22. Coincidentally State Minister for Civil Aviation and Tourism Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir travelled from Dhaka to Cox's Bazar on this flight with other distinguished guests.
Cox's Bazar, which is famous for it's magnificent sea beach, is fast becoming the most preferred tourist spot of Bangladesh. Recent years have seen unprecedented increase in tourism related activities attracting large number of visitors both from home and abroad. Tickets for travel to Cox's Bazar can be purchased from local travel agents or any of the sales offices of GMG Airlines.

http://www.bangladeshmonitor.net/aviation_story.php?recordID=329

Zia International Airport being made more passenger friendly
March 01, 2006
Dhaka : Zia International Airport, following the completion of its extension work, is receiving small touches here and there, making it more passenger friendly. With 5.65 per cent increase in the number of passengers every year, the extension work was completed at the right time. We are now trying to enhance our services at this premier airport gateway of the country, said Air Commodore AKM Harun Chowdhury, Chair-man, Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB). Generally people get irritated if there is a delay in coming out of the airport. Passengers are now able to come out of the airport within 45 minutes considered the industry standard, the CAAB chairman claimed.
Check-in counters have been increased to 32 and Immigration counters to 28 for faster check-in and completing Immigration formalities. The BGMEA already has a counter to receive guests, while six hotels also have counters, where incoming travelers can contact and be taken to their hotel of choice. Besides the existing bank counters, Dutch Bangla Bank Limited has recently installed an ATM for incoming travelers to use it and change their currency. A cell phone service provider is expected to set up similar facility at the Arrivals Hall for travelers to call their dear and near ones or recharge their cell phones. To make baggage more secure, baggage in future will be wrapped with transparent plastic sheet and we are in the process of installing this facility.
The flight information display system (FIDS) will be upgraded to plasma television which will be installed at the Departure Hall. The ticker running underneath, will display information like weather conditions in different cities. In the near future flight information is likely to be available on cell phones also, said Air Commodore AKM Harun Chowdhury. The domestic terminal has been connected with the international terminal so that international passengers do not have to come out of the terminal to go to another terminal as they had to do before.
A Remote Control Air-Ground (RCAG) radar will be installed in place of the present one under a Danish grant. The one we have, is old. The air traffic controllers have to stretch their eyes while they work. The taxiway of ZIA will also be completely renovated under the same grant, he added. The CAAB chief denied that his organisation was losing revenue because of the age-old radar. He said eight persons have been recruited to cope with the shortage of controllers who are overworked. They are a very good team. We also train and provide refresher training to air traffic controllers from Bangladesh Air Force, he said. On ZIA, he further said the terminal buildings and the apron is fully utilised. The apron will have to be extended and the tarmac expanded, he added. The south canopy of ZIA is likely to be inaugurated on March 1, he added. As the number of cargo planes have increased the airside of the Cargo Village will also be developed in the days ahead.
With the extension of the terminal building, Osmany International Airport in Sylhet will wear a new look when the Tk 47 crore project is completed by the middle of next year. Wide-bodied planes will be able to land there with full load. Two boarding bridges will also be installed at the airport. The runway of the 23-year-old Jessore airport will receive an overlay. Facilities will also be increased at Barisal, Syedpur and Rajshahi airports, the CAAB chief informed.

http://www.bangladeshmonitor.net/aviation_story.php?recordID=328

Bangkok-Chittagong route proves profitable for Thai
March 01, 2006
Bangkok : Somchainuk Engtrakul, Member, of the Board of Directors Acting as President, Thai Airways International Public Company Limited, said that the company has conducted successful operations on the Bangkok-Chittagong route, since rerouting was conducted from Bangkok-Chiang Mai-Chittagong to operate instead on the route Chiang Mai-Bangkok-Chittagong, effective since October 2005 onwards. The flight rerouting proved profitable for the company, beginning November-December 2005, with a cabin factor of approximately 66 per cent. Studies conducted prior to flight-revision concluded that Chittagong is the second city of importance in Bangladesh, with Dhaka being most important.
Chittagong is a port of high importance, a labour market, with businessmen and affluent citizens. Thai first began operating flights to and from Chittagong on December 11, 2002. Even though initially the company experienced losses and increased fuel costs, the company initiated several sales incentives on a regular basis, placing heavy emphasis supporting elements that resulted in improved financial results and focus on expanding its cargo market. In the first year operating this route, the company supported promotion of Chiang Mai as a medical care centre, whereby people from Chittagong would travel to Chiang Mai for medical services.
In addition, the company promoted the shipment of commercial cargo to and from Chittagong and Bangkok, as well as agricultural cargo such as vegetable and fresh fruits from Chiang Mai and Bangkok to Chittagong. The cargo market has grown substantially at a higher rate on a gradual basis by 68 per cent in year 2005. The company currently has plans to expand its cargo market by changing to a larger capacity cargo aircraft in order to facilitate the amount of cargo shipment that increased in the Summer Schedule 2006. Thai to manage Chittagong’s SAIA The company has also received approval from the Bangladesh Cabinet to manage Chittagong's Shah Amanat International Airport, in Chittagong, Bangladesh, for a period of 10 years. Thai was awarded the bid at the net amount of 529 million taka or approximately 379 million Thai baht (US$ 9.463 million), with airport management to begin as of March 2006 onwards.
Currently, Thai operates three flights per week to Chittagong, with flights operated on Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays, utilising Boeing B737-400 aircraft. In the Summer Schedule 2006 (April-September 2006), every Wednesday, the company will fly to Chittagong utilising Airbus A300-600 instead of the Boeing B737-400 in order to facilitate growing cargo demands. The company has plans to promote Chiang Mai as a center of education, export products, and other markets, supporting Chiang Mai as the region's transport and commercial center.

http://www.bangladeshmonitor.net/aviation_story.php?recordID=326

AirAsia eager to start operations in Dhaka


Malaysia-based AirAsia is eager to start operations in Dhaka as the airline sees huge business prospects in Bangladesh.

"We see a huge prospect of operating flights from Bangladesh, with a large number of passengers flying to Malaysia, Thailand and other cities in the region," Kamaruddin Meranun, group deputy chief executive officer of the airline, told a press conference in Dhaka yesterday (March 7).

The high official of the company is now in Bangladesh to explore the possibilities of regional airline operation in association with East-West Airlines of Bangladesh.

East-West Airlines, a sister concern of Orion Group, has already obtained Provisional Air Transport Operating Licence. The airline is planning to operate flights on domestic routes.

"The expected deal between AirAsia and East-West Airlines on operating both domestic and international flights will be the first foreign direct investment in Bangladesh's aviation sector," K. Mojibul Hoq, executive president of Orion Group, told the briefing at Bangladesh-China Friendship Conference Centre.

In the open sky policy regime, the initiative of joint co-operation between East-West Airlines and AirAsia will be a huge boost for the development of the aviation sector, Hoq noted.

AirAsia began its operations in Malaysia in 1996 and now has expanded its services to Thailand and Indonesia through joint ventures.

The airline is now operating 100 flights a day from four hubs located in Kuala Lumpur and Johor Baru in Malaysia.

http://www.asianewsnet.net/level3_template1.php?l3sec=2&news_id=53394

Air India to raise flight frequencies from Bangladesh, launches price war

The leading Indian airline, Air India, has reduced airfares for its three destinations-Kolkata, Delhi and London-from Dhaka, triggering a price war with its competitors.

The airlines officials formally announced on Thursday that the fare cuts would be up to 13 per cent for the economy class and 10 per cent for business and first classes.

The airlines reduced its fare to 120 dollars from previous 138 dollars for Kolkata-Dhaka return ticket in the economy class. It also slashed return airfare for Dhaka-Delhi-Dhaka to 405 dollars from 420 dollars inclusive taxes.

The London-bound passengers can purchase return tickets for 800 dollars that was 850 dollars earlier.

“Air India now offers cheapest fair for all the passengers from Dhaka to Kolkata and Delhi and attractive fares for London-bound passengers,” said AK Mitra, the airlines country manager in Bangladesh.

Narrating the airline’s latest business performance and future plans, the official found Bangladesh to be a very prospective market for Air India. He said that market response is very good here and the air lines would immediately increase flight frequencies from Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh.

Air India now operates three flights weekly from Dhaka to Calcutta, Delhi and London.

The Air India executive said that 20 more seats would be added immediately to its Dhaka-bound aircraft having 272 seats each now and the number of weekly flights will be raised to six.

Air India restarted its flight operations in Dhaka route in June 2005 with occupancy of about 30 per cent, which has increased to more than 90 per cent now. “Good business encouraged is to increase capacity,” he added.

The airline also announced its summer schedules with effect from March 29.

The schedule in Bangladesh time shows that the Air India Dhaka-Kolkata-London flight departs Tuesday from Dhaka at 7:45 a.m. (local time), arrive at Kolkata at 8:50 a.m. and reach London at 3:55 p.m., Thursday 11:55 am, 12:12pm and 8:05pm and Saturday 12:05pm, 12:25pm and 8:15pm respectively.

The Delhi-bound flights will depart from Dhaka on Tuesdays at 3:40 p.m. (local time) and arrive at Delhi at 6:30 p.m., Thursday at 7:50 a.m. and 10:40 a.m., and Saturday at 8:00 a.m. and 10:50 a.m. respectively.

http://www.newkerala.com/news2.php?action=fullnews&id=20087

Etihad Airways operates flights to Dhaka from May 3
FE Report
3/13/2006

Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, will operate flights to Dhaka from May 3, 2006, providing frequent quality air travel between Bangladesh and the Middle East.
The new route between Dhaka and Abu Dhabi is the direct result of Etihad Airway's ambitious plans to link the world's most important commercial and cultural centres and provide a service to the 350,000 Bangladeshi nationals based in the UAE.
Etihad Airways, twice awarded the title of the "World's Fastest Growing Airline," has recently taken delivery of its first purpose-built Airbus A330-200 and Boeing 777-300ER aircraft.
The new fleet is part of a record order for 29 new aircraft worth $8 billion, which are scheduled for delivery in Abu Dhabi in the next two years.
Etihad Airways Chairman Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saif Al Nahyan said: "This new service will enable guests to travel in style between the two regions, strengthening further the economic and diplomatic ties between Bangladesh and the UAE." UAE High Commissioner in Bangladesh Khalfan Battal Ali Al-Mansouri also spoke on the occasion.

http://www.financialexpress-bd.com/index3.asp?cnd=3/13/2006&section_id=7&newsid=18526&spcl=no

Currently Thai International, Singapore Airlines, Emirates, Aeroflot, British Airways, Indian Airlines, Pakistan International Airlines, Saudia Airlines, Qatar Airways, Malaysian Airlines, Burma Airways Corporation, Iran Air, Oman Air, Kuwait Airways, China Eastern Airlines, Gulf Air, Cosmic Air, Jet Airways, GMG Airlines and Bangladesh Biman operate their flights from Dhaka and connect almost all the major destinations of the world.

Qatar Airways increases capacity to Dhaka

Due to a breakthrough in the air service agreement between the governments of Qatar and Bangladesh, Qatar Airways has increased capacity between Doha and Dhaka to seven flights a week.

An extra two scheduled flights a week have been launched, operating on Tuesdays and Saturdays, to take frequency up from five services.

The airline is continuing to use its state-of-the-art Airbus A330 on the route, with a two-class cabin of 22 seats in Business and 259 in Economy.

The extra capacity on the route follows the conclusion of bilateral discussions in Dhaka recently where a high level delegation of government officials from Qatar and Bangladesh held talks about increasing trade between both countries.

Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer Akbar Al Baker said he was delighted to see additional flights serving the Bangladeshi community in Qatar and Bangladesh.

“The breakthrough in the bilaterals between our two governments enables us to now serve Dhaka with a greater number of flights and this is good news for the travelling public as it offers more choice and greater options to fly to destinations further afield,” he said.

Qatar Airways previously had traffic rights to operate four flights a week between Doha and Dhaka. A fifth service has been operating under a codeshare agreement with Biman Bangladesh.

http://www.asiatraveltips.com/news05/108-Dhaka.shtml

some random photos of various airlines in Dhaka Airport.

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Foreign Airlines in Dhaka Airport

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Awesome pics.....Zia has some interesting architecture:D:D

Air Asia set to stir country’s aviation scene

Dhaka : The arrival of Kamaruddin Meranun, Chief Group Deputy CEO of AirAsia Group, in the city was almost unannounced, but when Air Asia starts services to Dhaka and within destinations in Bangladesh it is sure to cause a stir in the country’s aviation scene. Kamaruddin and four of his friends bought a failing full service Malaysian carrier and turned it into a profitable budget airline which has become a significant player in the industry and been imitated by national carriers along with a host of new low-cost entrants. It is now southeast Asia's biggest low-cost carrier in terms of fleet size and derives much of its business within Malaysia. It also operates in Thailand, Indonesia, the Philippines, Singapore, Macau and China.
Kamaruddin came to Bangladesh at the invitation of the East West Air Lines Ltd., a sister concern of Orion Group, one of the largest business conglomerates in the country, to explore the possibilities of establishing a regional airline. “At the initial stage, East West Air Lines plans to starts regional flights to and from Dhaka serving Kolkata, New Delhi, Kathmandu, Yangon and Singapore. It also has plans to operate flights from Chittagong and Sylhet,” said K Mojibul Hoq, Executive President of Orion Group while addressing a press briefing at Bangladesh-China Friendship Conference Centre. Captain Chin Nyok San, Executive Vice President, Air Asia and Salman Obaidul Karim, Managing Director, Orion Group were also present at the press briefing. “East West Air Lines has already undertaken the necessary steps in this regard, obtaining Provisional Air Transport Operating License (PATOL) to operate domestic and international flights.”
“Under the open sky policy of the government, the initiatives taken by East West Air Lines for direct investment and technology transfer will be a great leap forward for the development of the aviation sector in Bangladesh,” said Mojibul Hoq. Kamaruddin said his low cost airline started with only two Boeing B737-300s in December 2001 and now has 39 aircraft in its fleet flying to 64 domestic and international destinations. Two Airbus A320s are joining the fleet every month. To date the AirAsia Group carried over 10 million guests. “We bought the airline- founded in 1996 - only three days before September 11, 2001 and some friends told us we were mad, but since then have proved ourselves and overcome challenges like fuel price hike, SARS, Tsunami and now bird flu.”
The airline is now operating 100 flights a day from four hubs including Kuala Lumpur and Johor Bahru in Malaysia. Modelled on successful low fare airlines such as the US-based Southwest Airlines and Dublin-based Ryanair, AirAsia created a new aviation product in Malaysia and South Asia that revolutionised air travel providing incredibly low fares so more people could fly. “We are very disciplined. Our secret is to keep the operation as simple as possible and keep the costs low as low as 2 US cents per ASK. That’s how we are the lowest for any destination.” “We sell as much as 55 to 60 per cent - through the Internet, 34 per cent through call centres and the rest by SMS. We are ticketless in the sense that we do not have printed tickets.”
“We have applied for landing rights. We are ready to start operating as soon as we get the permission,” Kamaruddin said. “We would like to work together, expand thorough joint ventures,” he said adding he found great potentials for the low-cost model in Bangladesh. "We see huge prospects for operating flights from Bangladesh with a large number of passengers flying regularly to Malaysia, Thailand and other destinations in the region," added Kamaruddin. Asked how he promotes the airline, Kamaruddin said, “We fly musicians, giving them a few free tickets, who then do videos on us.” The airline would begin with cheap regional flights to countries in southeast Asia followed by a joint venture with East West Airlines offering domestic flights in Bangladesh, he said.

http://www.bangladeshmonitor.net/aviation_story.php?recordID=384

Etihad Airways to launch services to Dhaka on May 3

Dhaka : Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, will launch flights to Dhaka from May 3 "providing frequent quality air travel between Bangladesh and the Middle East." Dhaka will be Etihad Airways’ eighth destination in the Asian sub-continent, joining new and established Etihad routes to Colombo, Islamabad, Karachi, Lahore, Mumbai, New Delhi, and Peshawar. It will also be the 30th destination on Etihad’s rapidly expanding network, which includes the start of services to nine new destinations in 2006. Flights between Dhaka and Abu Dhabi is the direct result of Etihad Airway’s ambitious plans to link the world’s most important commercial and cultural centres and provide service to the 350,000 Bangladeshi nationals based in the UAE.
"This new Etihad service between Dhaka and Abu Dhabi will enable guests to travel in style between the two regions, strengthening further the economic and diplomatic ties between Bangladesh and the UAE," said Dr. Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saif Al Nahyan, Etihad Airways Chairman. The lights will commence with four flights a week service from May 3 and increase to five flights per week from June 5. The new service will offer a total weekly capacity of 1,465 seats, and 15 tonnes of cargo, in each direction. The route will also be serviced by some of the world’s most technologically advanced aircraft, including the modern Airbus A330-200, in a two zone – Pearl and Coral - configuration, designed to offer high standards of comfort, luxury and style. The new Dhaka route will also provide significant benefits for Etihad Crystal Cargo, the cargo division within the airline, with the recent growth in manufacturing and energy sectors in Bangladesh increasing demand on this route.
"The Dhaka route is a vital commercial and leisure route. As well as enabling Gulf-based Bangladeshi families to visit one another, the new route also opens up new business opportunities for UAE businesses to invest in Bangladesh’s growing economy," said Dr. Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saif Al Nahyan. The UAE Ambassador to Bangladesh relations, Khalfan Battal Ali Al-Mansouri, has also underlined the development of between the two countries, saying that it is important for both countries to enhance trade, investment and economic activities. Etihad Airways, twice awarded the title of the "world’s fastest growing airline," has recently taken delivery of its first purpose-built Airbus A330-200 and Boeing B717-300ER aircraft.
The new fleets are part of a record order for 29 new aircraft, to the value of US$8 billion, which are scheduled for delivery in Abu Dhabi in the next two years. Etihad Crystal Cargo offers a comprehensive range of cargo services throughout Etihad’s network, and serves its many all-cargo destinations and world-wide charters with a fleet of modern regional freighter aircraft. Etihad Holidays offers a range of innovative holiday options to 69 destinations across 23 countries. Packages include skiing, flydrives, cruises and tours. Through these exciting divisions, Etihad Airways is changing the way people see the world. Jill Errington Jill Errington, Manager Bangladesh, Etihad Airways said she was delighted to come to Bangladesh. After her retirement in 2004 she visited Bangladesh while on her way to China.
Hinting that she was an old hand in opening new routes, she said, "opening destinations is exciting," adding she had opened destinations in the countries that emerged following the breakup of former Soviet Union. Jill said she will target cross-section of travellers, promoting destinations in Middle East, Europe and across the Atlantic. Etihad will be providing convenient on ward connections to Bangladeshi travellers from Abu Dhabi. She said Bangladesh was growing as a market with growing number of people taking to the air. Facilities are expanding not only in Dhaka but also in Chittagong and Sylhet. Implementation of BSP has also brought about a great change in the trade, she added.

http://www.bangladeshmonitor.net/aviation_story.php?recordID=383

Substantial increase in leisure, business trafic : Nabil Sultan, Emirates keen to enhance capacity to meet growing demand of Bangladesh market

Dubai : The Bangladesh air travel market is growing and Emirates is keen to provide more capacity to meet the market demand. Nabil Sultan, Senior Vice President, Commercial Oper-ations, West Asia and Indian Ocean disclosed this while talking to a group of visiting journalists from Bangladesh at his office in Dubai. He described Dhaka as an important destination for Emirates and said that his airline is currently operating nine flights a week with Boeing B777-200 aircraft with over 90 per cent load factor. Under the circumstances, Emirates have to deny passengers seat and not in a position to cater to market demand, he said. Emirates, he added, is interested to operate at least twice daily flight to meet the market demand. Nabil Sultan said that apart from more capacity, Emirates would provide convenient connections to large number of destinations including Europe and North America..
Talking about Bangladesh air traffic market Nabil said along with increase in volume, the quality has also improved. The market has registered substantial increase in leisure and business traffic, he added. Emirates, Nabil said is also interested to operate to Chittagong after meeting the demand of Dhaka market. Nabil informed the Bangladeshi journalists that Emirates is interested to include Bangladesh in its Emirates Holiday programme. The airline would initiate discussions with Bangladesh Parjatan Corporation (BPC) as well as private sector tour operators to finalise arrangement in this regard. He requested BPC to participate in next Arabian Travel Mart to promote Bangladesh in the region. Posts half-year profits Emirates sources said while airline industry is reeling under pressure of high fuel prices, Emirate has been able to soften the impact through Strong Revenue Growth and Efficiency Drives. The airline has announced net profits of Dhs 922 million (US$251 million) for the first six months of the financial year 2005-06.( Ist April to 30th September).
Emirates' Chairman, Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed AI-Maktoum, said: "Emirates has delivered an excellent half-year result despite the fact that fuel cost rose 84 per cent compared to the first six months of our last financial year. This robust half-year performance reflects strong revenue growth, and it also demonstrates the company's resilience and adaptability to new challenges in the operating environment." Emirates' operating revenue of Dhs 10.4 billion ($2.84 billion) for the half-year represented a strong growth of 28 per cent vs. revenue of Dhs 8.2 billion ($2.22 billion) during the same period last year. Seat factor improved by 2.6 percentage points to 76 per cent during the period, and passengers carried rose 15 per cent to 6.98 million, compared to 6.05 million for the first half-year of 2004-05. Seat capacity also increased by 16 per cent vs. the same period last year. Emirates SkyCargo's revenue posted a healthy growth of 33 per cent to Dhs 2.1 billion, with cargo tonnage rising by 20 per cent to 482,643 tonnes, compared with 404,305 tonnes for the same period last year. Emirates now operates seven all-cargo freighters six Boeing B747s and one A310-300. Financially self-sustained and unprotected, Emirates is one of the fastest growing and most profitable airlines in the world.
Since January 2005, Emirates has introduced new passenger services to the Seychelles, Seoul, and Alexandria; and it also increased the frequency of passenger services to some 20 destinations around its network. Orders for more B777 aircraft In November 2005 Emirates Airline announced firm orders for 42 Boeing B777 aircraft, to be powered by GE90 jet engines, in a deal worth Dhs 35.7 billion (US$9.7 billion) at list prices. This is the largest-ever order for the Boeing B777 family of aircraft and consists of: 24 Boeing B777-300ERs, 10 B777-20OLR Worldliners and eight B777 Freighters, with the first aircraft scheduled for delivery in 2007. In addition, Emirates will have purchase rights for 20 more B777 aircraft. The announcement was made by Emirates' Chairman Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktourn and Jim McNerney, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of The Boeing Com-pany, on the opening day of Dubai 2005 - the 9h Inter-national Aerospace Exhibition. Sheikh Ahmed said: "We are investing in more new aircraft to meet the escalating demand for Emirates' services from our customers across the globe. This new order will support the airline's growth plans, and enhance our fleet's range and versatility."
Dubai-based Emirates is one of the world's fastest growing international airlines, and the second most profitable. Independent and financially self-sustained, Emirates operates an all wide-bodied fleet of 83 aircraft to over 77 cities in 54 countries. World Cup tickets Meanwhile, good news for football fans planning to catch some thrilling World Cup action live in Germany. Emirates, an Official Partner of the FIFA World Cup 2006, is offering complimentary match tickets for fans who want to experience World Cup fever firsthand.
The airline’s newly-launched Emirates FIFA World Cup 2006 Offers entitle football aficionados to a complimentary ticket to any of the World Cup matches including the finals, subject to ticket availability. The package also includes a return air ticket to Germany (Frankfurt, Hamburg, Munich or Dusseldorf), hotel accommodation for two nights, airport and airline taxes and surcharges, taxes and service fees. Emirates is the first airline ever to partner with FIFA and one can immediately see the benefits that having such a partner brings to the 2006 FIFA World Cup. Other than promoting the event globally through their marketing activities, Emirates also has the ability to fly football fans into its four destinations in Germany from all over the world via their Dubai hub, and will bring many thousands of visitors to the tournament. The Emirates FIFA World Cup 2006 Offers is valid from June 9 to July 9, 2006.

http://www.bangladeshmonitor.net/aviation_story.php?recordID=382

inside ZIA....

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A Qatar Airways flight just landed...

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Cyber cafe opened at Departure Lounge of ZIA

Dhaka : In another move to turn the premier gateway to the country more passenger friendly, Airport IT Centre (cyber café) was opened at the Departure Lounge of Zia International Airport on March 6. Air Commodore AKM Harun Chowdhury, Chairman, Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) formally inaugurated the centre by cutting a ribbon and clicking the mouse of a computer. Khan Mohammad Iqbal, Managing Director, Baba Online Ltd., was present on the occasion, among others. The centre will not only provide high speed broadband service, wireless Internet Service, fax service, photocopying, scanner service, printing service, telephone (NWD and ISD), Net-2-phone, voice chat and video chat facilities, but also offer soft drinks and coffee.

http://www.bangladeshmonitor.net/aviation_story.php?recordID=376

Osmany International Airport runway expanded, Wide-bodied aircraft can land now

Sylhet : Osmany Inter-national Airport with improved facilities was opened here on March 12 for taking off and landing of the wide-bodied aircraft after the completion of necessary expansion work of its runway and other developments. An Airbus of Biman Bangladesh Airlines, which flied straight from Kuwait, first landed on the airport after its formal opening in presence of concerned officials and local elite. Finance and Planning Minister M. Saifur Rahman at a ceremony welcomed the passengers of the Airbus. State Minister for Civil Aviation and Tourism Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir was present as the special guest.
The Finance Minister said the present government has given top priority on the development of infrastructure facilities to achieve coveted success in all key economic sectors like education, health, sanitation and nutrition. He called upon the people to properly utilise the facilities already provided in the Osmany International Airport and said appropriate care of this important installation would greatly help promote trade and business as well as tourism industry in the region.
Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir described Sylhet a potential hub for tourists and expressed the hope that the already increased facilities in the airport here would expand the tourism industry in the region. Officials said that the completion of the development project for expanding the runway and providing other facilities in this airport had cost Taka 90 crore. They said under the project the width of the airport runway was expanded while its length was prolonged to help wide-bodied aircraft take off and land easily. Besides, they added, new apron and taxi-way were constructed side by side with modernising the lighting system.

http://www.bangladeshmonitor.net/aviation_story.php?recordID=381

GMG Airlines likely to receive B737-300 aircraft by month end

Dhaka : GMG Airlines, country’s lone private sector airline, is likely to receive its first Boeing B737-300 aircraft by the end of this month or by the middle of next month. The leased 124-seat airline, configured in 12 seats in Business Class and 112 in Economy Class, is now undergoing C-check in Singapore. Alliance Air of United States was the previous user of the aircraft, registered in US. It is likely to serve the destinations of Kathmandu, Bangkok and New Delhi and when another B737 joins its fleet sometime in the future, services to Colombo and Male are likely to start. The airline has already taken a office in New Delhi.
Ismail Chowdhury, Director, Marketing and Sales, GMG Airlines was talking to The Bangladesh Monitor at his office recently. Along with start of services of its first Boeing B737-300 aircraft, GMG Airlines will also be launching "tikarrow," a passenger-friendly reservation system which will enable the airline to go for e-ticketing. "All our travel agents will be able to sell on the Web," he added. This system will automatically generate and send messages to our passengers if there is a delay of flight by 10 minutes. In future we hope to offer a system whereby the passengers would be able to know our flight timings on their cell phones. After a few months of launching this B2B system, we hope to go for B2C - enabling the passengers to book their seats on the Internet.
We also hope to launch a three-tiered Frequent Flyer Programme soon, he said. In other developments the airline plans to offer simultaneous departures fron Dhaka and Chittagong as well as flying from Chittagong to Sylhet and vice versa. There’s a lot of traffic for the route as for Chittagong-Jessore, Chitta-gong-Barisal and Barisal-Jessore. This loop-like routes will give us a great deal of flexibility, help the fare to come down and generate more passengers, Chowdhury said.
Replying to a question Ismail informed that "Services to Kolkata has given us good results since its very start. Cabin factor is 80 to 85 per cent on this route," he added. The airline, which has achieved 97.5 per cent on time departures and 70.9 per cent load factor, would benefit from subsidies as our overhead costs are high and aircraft are leased, and fuel prices high, mentioning that aircraft with 70 seats or less do not have to pay landing and parking fees in India. "It wold be of great help if the government grants us these facilities," he said. Regarding high standards of maintenance, he said GMG Airlines follows strict European maintenance standards, its Chief Engineer is a British national and its pilots have to often take refresher courses in simulator in Madrid.

http://www.bangladeshmonitor.net/aviation_story.php?recordID=373

Some info on GMG Airlines:

GMG Airlines Ltd. - a part of the well established & reputed GMG Group is Bangladesh's leading & only Private Domestic Airline and has become a household name within 3 years of its operations. GMG Airlines is an airline based in Dhaka, Bangladesh. It is Bangladesh's leading private domestic airline operating domestic services, with an extension to India. Its main base is Zia International Airport, Dhaka.

GMG connects daily Dhaka city - the capital of Bangladesh to 6 other cities within Bangladesh and India with frequent and conveniently timed flights at regular intervals. The destinations where GMG presently flies to are Chittagong, Sylhet, Jessore, Barisal, Cox's Bazar & Calcutta.

GMG Airlines became Bangladesh's first private airline to fly overseas on July 1 when it launched flights on Chittagong-Kolkata route after the government agreed to allocate it four more routes. When the GMG received air transport operating licence (Atol) on January 13 with permission to operate on Dhaka-Colombo via Chennai, Dhaka-Male via Colombo and Chittagong-Chiang Mai routes, it was sceptic of its international future due to allocation of these 'less attractive routes'. Beginning with three weekly flights on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday, GMG Airlines has a plan to start daily flights between Chittagong and Kolkata.

After long negotiation, the government recently decided to add Chittagong-Kolkata and Dhaka-Kathmandu routes to GMG's existing ones.

The Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism also recently asked the Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (Caab) to immediately start negotiations with its Indian counterpart to increase flight frequency in the air services agreement to facilitate the GMG operate on Dhaka-Kolkata and Dhaka-Delhi routes.


The air services agreement between Bangladesh and India allows one or more Bangladeshi airline to operate 30 weekly flights to Indian destinations and Biman occupies 27 of them. The GMG has been permitted to fly on Dhaka-Chennai route, but the agreement does not permit a Bangladeshi airline to fly to Chennai. This prompted the ministry to ask Caab to include Chennai in the revised agreement.


GMG Airlines operates 32 flights everyday at an average of one landing / take off every half an hour.



http://www.gmgairlines.com/index2.html


GMG goes to Kathmandu, Colombo
and Male from October 1

Following a recent revision of the air service agreement with Nepal, the country's lone private airline GMG on Wednesday announced to operate flights to Kathmandu, Colombo and Male from October 1.
"We are ready to launch daily flights in Dhaka-Kathmandu and thrice a week flights in Dhaka-Colombo-Male routes with the beginning of the winter schedule," said Shahab Sattar, Managing Director of GMG Airlines at a press briefing.
GMG has also decided to bring a Boeing 737-300 aircraft on lease to operate flights in the new routes.
Bangladesh and Nepal have signed an air service agreement (ASA) on May 23 by assenting to increase the air-seat capacity between from the existing 3,500 per week to 7,000 per week by 2010.
Chairman of the Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh A.K.M. Haroon Chowdhury and Joint Secretary of the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation Yajna Prasad Gautam, signed the agreement on their respective part.
Under the MoU, both Bangladesh and Nepal will expand frequency of air services between the two countries.
Both the countries also agreed to introduce airfreight services to expand bilateral trade and for increasing economic interaction between the two countries, particularly, relating to air services.
"Agreements have also been made to increase air seats by 700 every year to make it 7,000 by 2010. The designated airlines could also carry 250 tons of cargo in a week," Sahab said.
He said that the designated Nepali airlines could also operate flights to Chittagong apart from Dhaka.
Reciprocating the provision, Bangladeshi airlines could also operate flights to other places in Nepal if they are open for international flights.
He said that code sharing has also been included in the air service agreement. Under this provision, airlines of the two countries could share 600 air seats a year and the number of code sharing seats would be increased by 100 seats every year.
The agreement also allows private airlines of the two countries to fly to each other.
Currently, Biman Bangladesh Airlines operates five flights a week and Cosmic Air of Nepal flies to Dhaka three times a week.
As air services agreement with Sri Lanka was signed earlier, GMG has decided to operate in Dhaka-Colombo routes extending it up to Male at the same time.
At present GMG is operating weekly two flights in Dhaka-Kolkata route and three flights in Chittagong-Kolkata routes.
GMG MD said that a lot of improvements have been made in the agreement and it would help promote the tourism and trade between the two countries. He said the agreement has increased the frequency, air seat, and airlines operating between the two countries.
The bilateral air agreement with Nepal was first signed in 1976 starting a weekly flight between Kathmandu and Dhaka. It was further modified in 1996.

China Eastern Airlines declares daily flight on Dhaka-Kunming-Beijing route

China Eastern Airlines (MU) has announced daily flight on Dhaka-Kunming-Beijing route from March 27.

China Eastern (MU) flight will now leave Dhaka at 1:30pm instead of 4:30pm to allow most passengers same day connection to other China cities and regional destinations of Far East/Asia, says a press release.

As usual, the airline has announced new competitive fare effective from 27th March 2006. All travel agents who may not have received new fare have been requested to contact GSA Skybridge International for details.

Travel in group of 10 persons or above shall enjoy further lower fares.

http://www.thedailystar.net/2006/03/30/d60330051053.htm

Web-based ED Centre Opens at Dhaka Airport

State Minister for Home Affairs Lutfuzzaman Babar inaugurated web based ED center at ZIA International Airport.

Dhaka, Bangladesh (PRWEB) March 27, 2006 -- The state minister for home, Lutfuzzaman Babar, inaugurated web based embarkation and disembarkation (ED) card filling out facility for immigration purposes and Dhaka Airport Immigration Area Renovation Project at the ZIA International Airport. Under this project, Standard Chartered will provide further financial support to operate a 24-hour customer service cell to provide one-stop support to the travelers, modernisation of immigration process and beautification of immigration areas to enhance the national image. The state minister for civil aviation and tourism, Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, and Standard Chartered Bank regional head of consumer banking John B Small also attended the occasion. Senior officials of the bank, including the CEO, Osman Morad, were present.

http://prweb.com/releases/2006/3/prweb363696.htm

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All photos taken by my boy Huzz. Next few days I will be posting photos of Dhaka that I got from him in all the Dhaka threads. Stay tuned.

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Air Asia eyes Bangladesh skies

Asia’s leading low-cost carrier, Air Asia, looks to expand its wings over Bangladesh skies to make air travel more affordable and more accessible to passengers to and from Dhaka.
‘We are hopeful that we will be able to start operation from Bangladesh,’ Tony Farnandes, the chief executive officer of the Air Asia group, told New Age last week at the group’s headquarters in Malaysia.
Without mentioning exactly when the budget carrier will start operation from Dhaka, the CEO said his company signed an agreement for joint venture in airlines and it would come into being as soon as the official procedures complete.
‘Starting flight operation is not like building a house; it involves a lot of things.’
Asked whether Bangladesh is prepared now for operating low-cost carrier, Kamaruddin Meranum, the deputy CEO of the group, replied in the negative saying the country needs to improve its infrastructure, especially in terms of handling charges and other amenities to be provided at low cost, for operating budget air services.
The Air Asia has signed a memorandum of understanding with East West Airlines, a sister concern of Bangladesh’s Orion group, to run the first-ever airlines joint venture in Bangladesh.
The East West Airlines obtained government approval for passenger and cargo transportation on international and domestic routes, Mojibul Hoq, the group’s executive president, said adding that initially the airlines planned its flight to Kolkata, New Delhi, Nepal, Myanmar, Bangkok, Kathmandu and Singapore in regional routes while to Sylhet and Chittagong in the domestic routes from Dhaka.
Explaining how the planned flights would operate, he said it would be a ticket-less service and passengers would be able to make bookings online or through short text message services. On an average, every flying hour would cost a passenger $25.
In addition, the passengers could fly at the minimum cost if they book their seats availing of various packages to be offered by the airline, he added.
Onboard drinks or meals are excluded in budget flights. But the passengers have the option to buy in-flight meals.
Following the models of North American and European budget air, Air Asia started its operation in January 2002 in Malaysia with a tag line of ‘Now Everybody Can Fly’ with two Boeing 737-300s.
Now the Air Asia has 41 aeroplanes in its fleet and ordered for 100 more airbuses, with one aircraft joining the fleet every week on an average.
The Malaysian government built a 35,290 square metre Low Cost Carrier Terminal near the Kuala Lumpur International Airport at the cost of 108 million ringit to cater to the growing passengers of the budget carriers.
Apart from Malaysia, the Air Asia now has joint venture initiatives with Indonesia and Thailand also.

http://www.newagebd.com/busi.html

AirAsia plans autumn launch of Bangladesh flights

Malaysia's AirAsia said its new joint venture budget airline in Bangladesh will start flights in October by offering fares at least 40 percent below other carriers, an official said.

The company, which will team up with Bangladesh's East West Airlines to launch Air East Asia, plans to operate daily flights between the capital Dhaka to Chennai and Kolkata in India as well as Singapore, Bangkok and Kuala Lumpur.

Air East Asia will be 49 percent owned by AirAsia with the newly-formed East West Airlines taking a 51 percent share, East West chief executive officer Mujibul Haq told AFP on Wednesday.

"The airline will be the first budget airline (in Bangladesh). There is a huge market for budget airlines in this region as an increasing number of people are travelling to and from Bangladesh," he said.

In 2004 Bangladesh witnessed nearly nine percent growth in international travel with 1.2 million people travelling to and from the country, according to government figures.

"The fares will be kept at at least 40 per cent less than the normal fares," he added.

AirAsia and East West signed a memorandum of understanding last week in Kuala Lumpur and AirAsia's board is expected to approve the joint venture airline later next month.

Under the Bangladesh agreement, AirAsia will provide two brand new 180-seat Airbus A-320 aircraft to Air East Asia and also technical and management support while East West will bear all local expenses, said Haq.

The airline also plans to fly to four major cities in Bangladesh.

AirAsia, which was launched as a budget carrier in December 2001 with just two aircraft, has become a significant player in the industry and been imitated by national carriers along with a host of new low-cost entrants.

It is now southeast Asia's biggest low-cost carrier in terms of fleet size and derives much of its business within Malaysia. It also operates in Thailand, Indonesia, the Philippines and China.

http://au.news.yahoo.com/060426/19/yq9r.html

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Etihad Airways to enhance links between UAE and Bangladesh with new Dhaka service

Etihad Airways' new service to the Bangladeshi capital, Dhaka, will take off this Thursday, 4 May, a day after the UAE's national airline launches its latest European destination, Paris.

The new Dhaka service - which increases from four to five flights-a-week from June - continues Etihad's commitment of providing frequent quality air travel between the Middle East and the Asian sub-continent.

The new destination follows Etihad Airways' ambitious plans to link Abu Dhabi to the world's most important commercial and cultural centres, and will provide a major service to the 350,000 Bangladeshi nationals based in the UAE.

'This new Etihad service between Abu Dhabi and Dhaka will enable Guests to travel in style between the two regions, further strengthening the economic and diplomatic ties between Bangladesh and the UAE. Business interests are growing year-on-year between the Middle East and Asian sub-continent, and Etihad will be able to support this demand with our frequent air services,' said Geert Boven, VP Commercial, Etihad Airways.

The UAE Ambassador to Bangladesh, Khalfan Battal Ali Al-Mansouri, has also underlined the development of ties between the two countries, saying that it is important for both countries to enhance trade, investment and economic activities.

The new service will offer a total weekly capacity of 1,465 seats, and 15 tons of cargo, in each direction.

'The Dhaka route is a vital commercial and leisure route. As well as enabling Gulf-based Bangladeshi families to visit one another, the new route also opens up new business opportunities for UAE businesses to invest in Bangladesh's growing economy,' continued Boven.

Dhaka will be Etihad's eighth destination in the Asian sub-continent, joining new and established Etihad routes to Colombo, Islamabad, Karachi, Lahore, Mumbai, New Delhi, and Peshawar.

It will also be the 30th destination on Etihad's rapidly expanding network, which includes the start of services to nine new destinations in 2006.

This network growth is bringing new business for Etihad Crystal Cargo, the cargo division within the airline, and the new Abu Dhabi - Dhaka route will further strengthen its reputation as a world-class cargo operator.

The major industry in Bangladesh is agriculture, but with much of the current focus on diversifying its economy, growth in the manufacturing and energy sectors looks set to continue.

The Abu Dhabi-based international airline will operate some of the world's most technologically advanced aircraft to Dhaka, including the modern Airbus A330-200, in a two zone configuration, designed to offer high standards of comfort, luxury and style.

Etihad Airways, twice awarded the title of the 'world's leading new airline,' has recently taken delivery of its third purpose-built Airbus A330-200 and fourth Boeing 777-300ER aircraft.

The new fleet are part of a record order for 29 new aircraft, to the value of US$8 billion, which are scheduled for delivery in Abu Dhabi in the next two years.

http://www.ameinfo.com/84534.html

Malaysia Airlines starts operating sixth flight to Kuala Lumpur

Dhaka : Malaysia Airlines has started operating an extra flight every week to Kuala Lumpur from April 23, raising the number of flights to six weekly. This will continue ad hoc - on month to month basis. If we see a good response the sixth one will be turned into a scheduled flight. Nur Shaffik Haris, Area Manager, Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan, said this while addressing a media briefing at a city hotel on April 24. If we see a bigger response, we will go for daily flights, he said.
Earlier in the day Malaysia Airlines, at Agents’ Seminar 2006, introduced new holiday packages for tourists from Bangladesh. Several officials of the airline made presentations on market fare, holiday package and Holidays Super Saver packages and answered questions from the travel agents. The new packages have been designed for all types of travellers and specially to attract more families to enjoy their holidays in Malaysia, Nur Shaffik Haris added. Travellers can enjoy their vacation in the beaches, mountain and modern city life and can get good bargains in shopping in Malaysia, he said.
A package of three days and two nights to Kuala Lumpur costs only Tk 22,425, which includes return air tickets, two nights’ accommodation in a four star hotel and transfers between airport and hotel. The other packages offered are to Penang, Langkawi, Kota Kinabalu, Kuching in Malaysia, Singapore, and Bali in Indonesia. Malaysia Airlines is also offering special package for Honeymooners.
Nur Shaffik Haris said Malaysia Airlines just recently clinched the “Economy Class Onboard Service Excellence 2006” award in an international survey conducted by Skytrax Research of London, UK. The Malaysian national carrier was declared the global winner in this category of the Skytrax Airline Excellence 2006 awards, which involved assessments covering up to 800 different rating items on products and services.

http://www.bangladeshmonitor.net/aviation_story.php?recordID=440

Brunei Interested In Air Link With Bangladesh

DHAKA, May 5 Asia Pulse - Brunei is willing to establish air link with Bangladesh and increase investment cooperation between the two countries.

Newly appointed High Commissioner of Brunei Darussalam to Bangladesh Dato Seri Laila Jasa Haji Abdul Rahman bin Abdul Hamid said this when he met Foreign Minister M Morshed Khan at the latter's office Thursday.

The new envoy said his country also wants to import pharmaceutical products from Bangladesh.

The Foreign Minister welcomed the proposal for establishing air link between the two countries, as it will help enhance economic activities.

He requested Brunei to increase manpower recruitment from Bangladesh for the betterment of the two economies.

Extending hearty welcome to the new High Commissioner, Morshed Khan assured him of all cooperation during his tenure in Bangladesh.

http://au.news.yahoo.com/060505/3/yu9b.html

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Inside ZIA International

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Bangladeshi expatriates buoyed by Etihad's new Dhaka service

Etihad Airways' new service from Dammam to Dhaka, via Abu Dhabi, provides the one-million-strong Bangladeshi community based in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) with unprecedented travel and business opportunities.

The new Dhaka service - which increases from four to five flights-a-week from June - continues Etihad's commitment of providing frequent quality air travel between the Middle East and the Asian sub-continent.

'Etihad's three times-a-week Dammam service, link up superbly to take Saudi-based Guests to Abu Dhabi and then onto Dhaka. Bangladesh-bound residents and business travellers are offered convenient onward connections as they only have an hour on the ground in transit at Abu Dhabi,' said HH Dr. Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saif Al Nahyan, chairman, Etihad Airways.

The new Etihad service between Dammam, Abu Dhabi and Dhaka will enable Guests to travel in style between the two regions, further strengthening the economic and diplomatic ties between Bangladesh and GCC countries.

'Business interests are growing year-on-year between the Middle East and Asian sub-continent, and Etihad will be able to support this demand with our frequent air services,' said Hamza Sharif, Etihad's KSA country manager.

Dhaka, which is Etihad's eighth destination in the Asian sub-continent and 30th globally, has joined new and established Etihad routes to Colombo, Islamabad, Karachi, Lahore, Mumbai, New Delhi, and Peshawar.

'The Dhaka route is a vital commercial and leisure route. As well as enabling Gulf-based Bangladeshi families to visit one another, the new route also opens up new KSA business opportunities for UAE businesses to invest in Bangladesh's growing economy,' concluded Hamza Sharif.

This network growth is bringing new business for Etihad Crystal Cargo, the cargo division within the airline, and the new Abu Dhabi - Dhaka route will further strengthen its reputation as a world-class cargo operator.

The major industry in Bangladesh is agriculture, but with much of the current focus on diversifying its economy, growth in the manufacturing and energy sectors looks set to continue.

The Abu Dhabi-based international airline will operate some of the world's most technologically advanced aircraft to Dhaka, including the modern Airbus A330-200, in a two zone configuration, designed to offer high standards of comfort, luxury and style.

http://www.ameinfo.com/85714.html

Yemenia looks to double flights from Dhaka


Yemen Airways wants to double its flight frequency from Dhaka and run four flights a week to Sana to cater to the growing demand of passengers and cargo.
‘We have already applied to the Bangladesh government to increase the flight frequency from exiting two to four,’ said Qassim YM Al Hibsy, area manager of Yemen Airways (Yemenia) in Bangladesh on Sunday.
‘We hope to get the permission soon,’ said Qassim in an interview with New Age.
Yemenia, one of the leading Middle Eastern carriers, had started its journey 50 years back as domestic airlines and gradually spread its wings to 23 global destinations in three continents with good hospitality and safety records.
It launched its operation in Bangladesh in 2004 following the signing of an Air Service Agreement between the two governments.
The Yemenia executive sees Bangladesh as a good market for the airlines due to increased movement of migrant workers and business travellers between the two countries.
‘I believe the Bangladeshi market is very potential and attractive for our airline,’ said Qassim.
Yemen Airways carried around 17,000 passengers and 9.60 lakh kilogram of cargo from Bangladesh in 2005.
He said that the number of passengers and volume of cargo could be doubled if the airline is allowed to operate more flights from Bangladesh.

‘If the government allows us to operate two additional flights per week, we hope to double the number of passengers and volume of goods carried between Dhaka and Sana.’
Currently, Yemenia operates Airbus-310-200 aircraft between Dhaka and Sana for passengers.
When asked whether the airline wants to be the strategic partner of Biman Bangladesh Airlines, Qassim responded positively.
‘Yemenia will be glad to become the strategic partner of Biman,’ he said.

http://www.newagebd.com/busi.html

Bangladesh to sell 61 pct of state airline in IPO

DHAKA, May 18 (Reuters) - Bangladesh is to sell a 61 percent stake in state-owned Biman Bangladesh Airlines through an initial public offering and the shares will be listed on the Dhaka and Chittagong stock exchanges, a minister said on Thursday.

"A meeting of the board of directors of Biman is likely to approve the project next week," Mirza Fakrul Islam Alamgir, state minister for civil aviation and tourism, told a news conference.

Biman has to be modernised with the help of private capital to help boost tourism in the region, the minister said ahead of a meeting of tourism ministers of member countries of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC).

Alamgir said Biman would soon cut flight frequencies on some international routes, including its Dhaka-New York service.

Biman flies to 26 international destinations with a fleet of 13 aircraft -- five DC-10s, four Airbus A310-300s and four Dutch-built Fokker F-28s.

It had been making losses since fiscal 1996-97, when it took an expensive lease on two new Airbus A310-300s, but it earned a net profit of 130 million taka ($2.05 million) in the fiscal year to June 2004, Biman officials said.

Officials could not give figures for the 2004-05 fiscal year (July-June).

SAARC groups Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. A summit held in Dhaka last November awarded full membership to Afghanistan and observer status to China.

http://asia.news.yahoo.com/060518/3/2kqdf.html

Bangladesh airline to sue US for barring aircraft landing
17 May 2006
The Press Trust of India Limited

Dhaka, May 17 (PTI) Bangladesh's national carrier Biman will sue US authorities for barring one of its aircrafts from landing at JFK Airport in New York this week, officials said today.

The DC-10 aircraft was forced to land at Montreal due to fuel shortage and had to keep passengers in hotel as well as arranging their onward journeys causing huge losses to the cash-strapped airline, the officials said.

Biman's Managing Director M A Momen told reporters that the Bangladesh mission in Washington has been asked to take legal action against the US authorities for "damaging the image of the airlines, putting the lives of crew and passengers in risk, and causing financial loss to the carrier." "We will of course go for legal action for compensation," he said.

The US Federal Aviation Administration sent a letter to Biman yesterday saying that barring landing of the aircraft was a mistake, which they deeply regretted.

Govt's bid to finalise SAIA's handover to Thai Airways

CHITTAGONG, May 31:–The government is expected to finalize the decision of handing over Shah Amanat International Airport (SAIA) in Chittagong to Thai Airways by next couple of days.

On the other hand, Mayor of Chittagong City Corporation (CCC) Alhajj ABM Mohiuddin Chowdhury had been expressing his disagreement over the issue since the bid of handing over the airport to Thai Airways.

A top official of Bangladesh Biman told The Bangladesh Observer preferring anonymity that he (Mayor) might take it as a political issue, which may create problems.

State Minister for Civil Aviation and Tourism Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir has already given green signal about the decision to the newsmen.

He, however, told the reporters that surprises were waiting for all regarding the issue. He on Tuesday told the reporters at his office to wait and see.

He also said that that Bangladesh Biman and Thai Airways had held fruitful talks very recently on the issue.

Sources said that a meeting in this regard would be held tomorrow (Thursday) where the issue will be discussed widely.

Earlier, on December 01, 2005 the Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) and the Thai Airways International signed a contract in Dhaka to manage Shah Amanat International Airport.

Following receiving approval from the Cabinet on June 23, 2004, Thai Airways International was awarded the bid at a net amount of Taka 529 million to manage the Shah Amanat International Airport for a period of 10 years.

As per the agreement, Thai Airways will operate, maintain, and manage the airport terminal building, ramp handling, cargo handling, airport security and maintenance.

Thai Airways will also be responsible for collecting fees for airport landing charges, security charges, embarkation fees, as well as ground handling related fees on behalf of the CAAB, coordinating with other air carriers operating to and from the airport in Chittagong.

http://www.bangladesh-web.com/news/view.php?hidDate=2006-06-02&hidType=TOP&hidRecord=0000000000000000110000

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Etihad to up Dhaka-Abu Dhabi flights to five per week

Etihad Airways, the national flag carrier of the United Arab Emirates, will increase its flight frequency on Dhaka-Abu Dhabi route to five days a week from the existing four from July 9.

The airline, which started operations in Dhaka on May 4 this year with four weekly flights, will operate on Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, says a press release.

"Dhaka is an important route on the Etihad Airways network and we look forward to continued expansion and offering a daily schedule to serve the Bangladeshi communities at home and abroad," says Jill Errington, area manager of the airline.

The introduction of extra service will offer agents and guests more capacity with increased connections to the Middle East and the growing number of worldwide destinations, the release added.

http://www.thedailystar.net/2006/07/03/d60703051058.htm

Chittagong Shah Amanat International Airport

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Bangladesh carrier suspends New York flights

Dhaka - Bangladesh’s national carrier Biman sent out its last flight to New York Saturday, suspending further flying on a route that was leading to mounting losses.

To minimise its losses worth about Taka 5.5 million (about $72,500) on the New York flight, Biman has asked the ministry of civil aviation and tourism to also suspend flights on the Dhaka-Paris, Dhaka-Frankfurt and Dhaka-Yangon routes from October this year, New Age said quoting a Biman official.

Biman has already stopped advance ticket booking for these destinations.

With Biman closing down more flights on international routes, ticket sales have fallen drastically from Taka 300 million in May to Taka 160 million in June this year.

The suspension was indefinite despite growing demand from Bangladeshis working in North America, Bangladesh Observer newspaper said.

Biman launched its direct Dhaka-New York service in 1993 with two flights a week. Later, the flight frequency was reduced to one, as the venture was found to be incurring losses.

The carrier also faced a warning on security grounds from the Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) of the US for operating 30-year-old DC-10 aircrafts on the route.

FAA considers the aircraft ‘not well-equipped for flying over the Atlantic’.

Like most third-world airlines, Biman is hit by rising fuel costs that has affected its long-term modernisation plans.

At present, Biman fleet comprises of five DC-10s, four airbuses and four F-28s on 26 international and seven domestic destinations.

http://nation.ittefaq.com/artman/publish/article_29544.shtml

Another Duty-free shop opens at ZIA

Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, State Minister for Civil Aviation and Tourism, on July 30 inaugurated Duty Free Shop and Drinks Corner at Terminal 1 for guests transiting through Zia International Airport. According to a press release of Duty Free Operations of Bangladesh Parjatan Corporation, Tk 750,000 has been spent for the Duty Free Shop and Tk 1.7 million for the Drinks Corner. It said that through the duty free shops BPC was earning US$ one million a year while the NTO hopes to earn Tk 3 million a year through the Drinks Corner. After formally inaugurating the Duty Free Shop, the minister went round the Shop as well as the Drinks Corner where he cut a cake specially prepared for the occasion.
Praising the BPC officials for showcasing sarees, punjabis and locally-made leather goods, he urged them to display more locally produced goods and handicrafts. In the Drinks Corner he was pleased to see bakery items made at Hotel Abakash and other items made in Bangladesh.

http://www.thedailystar.net/2006/07/31/d60731061574.htm

First Bangladeshi-owned airline
to fly from London
BDNews . London
With an estimated investment of about Tk 400 crore (30 million pound), first ever British Bangladeshi owned private airline company- Royal Bengal Airline is set to fly from London by the end of this year, company sources said.
‘We have set our target to start operation by the end of this year from London towards Dhaka,’ Selim Rahman, managing director of the RBA, told BDNews.
Initially the company has plan to fly in several routes which includes—London- Dhaka, London- Islamabad, London- Delhi, Birmingham- Dubai—Dhaka, said a top official of the company.
But a high official of Civil Aviation authorities of Bangladesh told BDNEWS at Dhaka that the RBA yet to apply for the international route permit.
Preferring anonymity, the official also said that if the RBA had applied, the CAAB would consider the matter.
‘We targeted the expatriate Bangladeshis here and in the middle east as our prime customers who has not been given the best service over the years,’
Rahman said, ‘We also have plan to run domestic and connecting flights in Bangladesh’.
The enthusiastic MD said, ‘we know we are going to create a big bang in the aviation industry because expatriates are always sympathetic about local airline company.’
‘Primarily the company has plan to operate with five aircrafts which includes Boeing 747 and 320’, Chowdhury Hafiz a company spokesman told BDNews.
He said, ‘We already have opened our office in London, Dhaka and in other major cities in the world to run operation smoothly.’
Hafiz said, ‘ We are going to write a history by operating flights in international route as first ever Bangladeshi and we hope that we are going to touch the sky some day.’
About forming the company, Mizanur Rahman, a director of the RBA and a former pilot told BDNews: It is the result of 5 years of hard work.’
Rahman said, ‘ We the expatriates have the money here, we are the leader in catering industry, we are doing good in cash and carry business, supply, insurance, real estate and banking. Why we should suffer for inefficient service of Biman Bangladesh Airlines?’
The RBA is now in its final stage of doing market research by flashing adverts in Bengali newspapers and Bengali televisions.
‘The purpose of the survey is to listen to the people to offer the best experience to our customers and allow passengers to fly without complexity,’ Shahidul Islam, Director of Market research of the RBA told BDNews.
The company’s HR and technical team has already ready with the Bangladeshi origin British graduates from top UK universities and getting training from some of the top companies at the moment, Heron Miah, another Director of the company told BDNews about their technical ability.
About the probability of RBA’s success, local journalist Muhammad Jubayer, executive editor of Bengali Weekly Euro Bangla said, ‘The company has a good chance to be successful as it might get the sympathy of Bangladeshi community here.’
To elaborate his view Jubayer said, ‘at present, service of Biman Bangladesh Airlines has fallen drastically where flight cancellation in London or in connecting airports becomes a regular phenomenon.’
‘As the Bangladeshi community here are getting fed up with the service of Biman and turning to Air India and other foreign airlines, RBA might do great as it is already advertising that it is owned by Bangladeshi people.’
He said, ‘another Bangladeshi owned private airliner United Airline will launch from UK soon, the company directors already held a press briefing about their project in London last month.’
The RBA directors told BDNEWS, the group had plan to launch its mega project from Dhaka, but political instabilities- hartal, blockade— forced them to come back to the UK.

http://www.newagebd.com/busi.html#2

Govt to allow Air Asia to fly from Chittagong

The ministry of civil aviation has decided in principle to allow Air Asia Berhad, a Malaysian low-cost carrier, to operate flights from Shah Amanat International Airport, Chittagong.
The decision was taken at a meeting held at the secretariat on Thursday with the state minister for civil aviation and tourism, Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, in the chair.
The Malaysian company will be allowed to operate flights five days a week from the Chittagong airport, said a source in the meeting.
A commercial agreement will be signed very soon between the Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh and Air Asia Berhad.
The government was thinking of allowing more foreign airlines to operate flights from Bangladesh as aircraft shortage forced the national carrier

http://www.newagebd.com/busi.html

Thai Airways Manages Bangladesh Airport

Bangladesh and Thailand agreed on Sunday Aug 6th, 2006 that Thai Airways International will manage Bangladesh's second international airport starting next month, visiting Thai Foreign Minister Kantathi Suphamongkhon said.

Kantathi told reporters after talks in the Bangladeshi capital, Dhaka, that he and Bangladesh Foreign Minister M. Morshed Khan also agreed to bolster cooperation in bilateral trade and investment, tourism, shipping, transport, health, agriculture, textiles and energy.

Thailand's national carrier will take over management of Shah Amanat International Airport in the southeastern port city of Chittagong from Sept. 1, and the number of regular flights between the two countries will rise when a new airport opens in the Thai capital, Bangkok, later that month, Kantathi said.

"We can have an open sky between us," he said.

Kantathi and Khan also signed a five-year agreement on cultural exchanges, but no information on that deal was immediately available.

In 2004-05, Thai exports to Bangladesh were worth US$326 million, while Bangladesh's exports to Thailand totaled only US$35 million.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/fn/4097629.html



Thai Air to manange Bangladesh airport from Sept

DHAKA, Aug 6 (Reuters) - Thai Airways will take up operations and management of Bangladesh's second biggest international airport, in the port city of Chittagong, from next month, the Thai foreign minister said on Sunday.

"Thai Airways will take up management of the Chittagong Shah Amanat Internatinal Airport from September 1," Kantathi Suphamongkhon told reporters after talks with Bangladesh Foreign Minister M. Morshed Khan.

Kantathi arrived in Dhaka on Sunday on a two-day visit to discuss economic cooperation between the two countries.

Thai Airways signed a management contract with Bangladesh's Civil Aviation Authority (BCAA) late last year, but the deal was delayed due to protests by trade unions.

"The trade unions will no more oppose the transfer of the management as we convinced them that the new management will not retrench existing employees," a senior official of BCAA said.

Thai Airways won the deal at nearly $10 million to manage the airport in Chittagong for a period of ten years.

It will provide passenger services, ground equipment services, cargo services and catering services. It will also operate, maintain, and manage the airport terminal building, ramp handling, cargo handling, airport security, maintenance and upkeep of buildings, a Thai embassy official said.

Previously used for domestic flights only, Chittagong airport was upgraded into an international airport in 2002.

http://asia.news.yahoo.com/060806/3/2o3el.html

Thanks for the updates!! :)

Emirates to start additional flight on Dhaka-Dubai route from Sept 1

Emirates will introduce an additional flight on its Dhaka-Dubai route from September 1.

The additional flight will render the total number of frequencies on the route to 10 per week, says a press release.

EK 585, the second Emirates' frequency to be operated on Saturdays, will depart Dhaka's Zia International Airport at 21:30 hours, arriving in Dubai at 00:25 hours the following day.

Emirates' flight EK 584 will take off from the ultra-modern Dubai International Airport every Saturday at 13:15 hours and touch down in Dhaka at 19:55 hours.

Hanif Zakaria, Emirates' area manager in Bangladesh, said: "The introduction of an additional frequency underlines Emirates' steady growth and expanding operations in Bangladesh. The airline recently added more capacity to its Dhaka route by de-linking Kuala Lumpur from its Dubai-Dhaka-Kuala Lumpur flights."

Earlier in the year, Emirates unveiled its new office at Zia International Airport.

http://www.thedailystar.net/2006/08/09/d60809050879.htm

Air Sahara to connect Kolkata with Bangladesh, China

Air Sahara will start a daily flight between Kolkata and the Bangladesh capital Dhaka later this year and plans are afoot to connect this eastern Indian metropolis with China directly in the near future.

The Kolkata-Dhaka service, the first international service from Kolkata by a private Indian airline company, is likely to start by November this year, said Alok Sharma, president Air Sahara.

"We have already applied to the Directorate General Civil Aviation (DGCA) for the necessary permission to start our Kolkata-Dhaka service," Sharma said.

"We are also planning to establish a direct air link between Kolkata and a Chinese city in the future. However, nothing has been finalised yet," he said.

"Plans are also on to start flight service to Southeast Asia from Kolkata," he said.

Air Sahara launched three new flights from Kolkata - to Patna, Lucknow and Ahmedabad - on Friday.

The company had earlier started a second frequency to Guwahati and would launch the Kolkata-Nagpur via Hyderabad route flight on Aug 25.

Air Sahara is also launching daily direct flights from Kolkata to Dibrugarh and Chennai and direct return flights to Port Blair on Sep 4 this year.

The frequency of the Kolkata-Delhi flight will be increased from the current three to five, the airlines said.

The company's expansion plan in Kolkata is part of its ongoing move to make the city the second largest hub, after Delhi, in the Air Sahara network.

"By December 2006 we will be offering 45 connections and 17 departures from Kolkata," Sharma said.

"The airline now has nine departures from Kolkata. In the next four months, Air Sahara will add 66 new flights and 14 new destinations to its network," the official said.

http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_1772459,0002.htm

Bangladesh achieves robust growth of air traffic– now is the time to look ahead & sustain the momentum

Bangladesh enter-ed the new millennium with a strong growth in air traffic and the upward momentum of the growth trend is still continuing. In the first five years of the new millennium (2001-2005), passenger traffic registered a growth of 15.5 per cent and air cargo 21.7 per cent. 2001: In 2001 the first year of the new millennium passenger traffic increased by robust 11.13 per cent to 27,06,918. But volume of cargo declined by 17.86 per cent to 94,460 tons. September 11 terrorist attacks on USA and subsequent repercussion can be blamed for the decline.

http://www.bangladeshmonitor.net/archives/images/sep01-06/images/Zia-2%20copy.jpg

2002: In 2002, passenger traffic increased by 5.43 per cent to 29,48,880. The increasing trend of cargo was regained and it increased by 7.06 per cent to 1,01,129 tons.

2003 : In 2003 passenger traffic increased by 2.81 per cent to 30,31,767 and cargo volume increased by 3.52 per cent to 1,04,689 tons.

2004 : In 2004 passenger traffic registered a growth of 3.17 per cent to 31,28,058 and cargo registered a growth of 2.55 per cent to 1,07,366 tons. 2005 : In 2005 passenger traffic increased to 32,30,550 registering a growth of 3.27 per cent. Growth of cargo during the year was much better compared to passenger traffic. It was 7.09 per cent to 1,14,979 tons.

In the first five years of the new millennium, the passenger traffic registered an average growth of 5.16 per cent per year. Although air cargo registered growth in four of the first five years of the new millennium, average yearly growth fell because of the 17.86 per cent decline of the volume in 2001.
The performance is the continuation of the significant growth that was achieved during the last decade of the past century—1990-2000-- in passenger movement and cargo uplift. In fact, the rising trend began early in the decade of 1980s. Between 1990 and 2005, Bangladesh and in other words its gateway by air Zia International Airport (ZIA) has registered growth in both passenger and cargo traffic. The number of passenger traffic went up from 14,32,005 in 2000 to 27,96,918 in 2005—a cumulative growth of 95.31 per cent and average annual growth of 6.12 per cent. Volume of cargo increased from 39,359 tons to 1,14,979 tons—a cumulative growth of 192.12 per cent and average yearly growth of 7.77 per cent.

1990 : In 1990, the beginning of the last decade of the last millennium, the number of passenger traffic—international and domestic—was 14,32,005 and cargo—both international and domestic—was 39,359 tons.

1991 : In 1991 the number of passenger traffic movement through ZlA increased to 14,80,455- a growth of 9.44 per cent despite 13.05 per cent fall in domestic traffic. But cargo volume declined to 35,156 tons-a fall of 10.68 per cent over the previous year.

1992 : In 1992, passenger traffic increased by 11.11 per cent to 16,45,035 and cargo volume increased by 29.87 per cent to 45,588 tons.
1993 : In 1993, the passenger traffic increased by 4.47 per cent to 17,18,613 and cargo volume increased to 46,883 tons by registering a growth of 2.83 per cent. 1994 : In 1993, the passenger traffic registered a growth of 9.37 per cent to 18,57,721. Cargo registered a growth of 38.18 per cent to 64,776 tons. 1995 : In 1995 passenger traffic registered a healthy growth of 8.49 per cent to 20,15,620. Cargo volume rose by 4.60 per cent to 67,758 tons. For the first time in history, the passenger traffic reached two million mark.

1996 : The same trend continued in 1996. Passenger traffic increased by 5,21 per cent to 21,20,693. Cargo volume grew by 6.78 per cent to 72,352 tons. 1997 : During 1997, passenger traffic registered a growth of 5.98 per cent to 2,247,675. Cargo volume increased to 78,737 tons or 8.82 per cent more than 1996.

1998 : In 1998, the passenger traffic achieved a growth of only 0.98 per cent to 2,269,106 and cargo volume reached 82,032 tons, registering increase of 5.32 per cent.

1999 : In 1999, passenger traffic registered a growth of 9.97 over the previous year to 2,491,125. Cargo volume increased by 2.64 per cent to 85,290 tons. 2000 : In 2000, last year of the last decade of the last millennium passenger traffic registered a growth of only 1.02 per cent over the previous year, despite growth of 11.03 per cent in international sector. This is because of 31.39 per cent fall of domestic traffic. Cargo registered a growth of 30.53 per cent to 1, 11,331 tons.

From the operational statistics between 1990 and 2000 it is evident that all the sectors have registered growth during the period. Movement of passenger and cargo aircraft has achieved an annual average growth of 6.75 per cent. In the critical areas of passenger and cargo, the growth figures are undoubtedly healthy. Passenger traffic increased on an average by 5.75 per cent annually and cargo registered an annual growth of 11.17 per cent on an average. Despite twice registering negative growth, mail has achieved an average growth of 23.89 per cent between the periods.

In the context of both global and national air traffic movement trends, the upward swing is expected to continue at a healthy rate. Through ZIA more aircraft, more passenger traffic and cargo are expected to move. The Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) has already implemented a number of development projects costing over Tk. 1000 million to increase capacity and enhance efficiency of the airport.

The extension of terminal building has enhanced the handling capacity of the airport to a large extent. Ground floor of the extended portion-- merged with the existing terminal has been designated as arrival lounge. It has a floor space of 168,000 square feet, more than the old arrival lounge and has four more carrousel conveyors for passenger baggage.

The commissioning of the extended portion of arrival lounge has increased the passenger handling capacity of ZIA from existing four million to six million passengers a year.

Following completion of terminal building extension, modernisation and re-construction of Departure Lounge has also been completed. The refurbished Departure Lounge with 36 check-in counter and CUTE system has made handling of departing passengers much faster and hassle free. There have also been two more (7th and 8th] boarding bridges to the side of extended portion of the terminal.

Despite the airport has undergone a number of important improvements since it’s commissioning in early 1980, the traffic growth is exerting enormous pressure on the facilities of the airport. But the scope of further expansion is limited. ZIA, it may be recalled, was originally conceived in the late I950s as a provincial airport to serve the growing domestic market between two wings of the then Pakistan, as well as base of operations to South West and Far East.

In 1961, the decision to construct a modern airport at Kurmitola was taken. More delays followed and by 1970 only one third of the construction work was completed. During the War of Independence, the runway and much essential machinery were damaged in bombing. After the independence of the country in 1971, the need for a modern airport was strongly felt. But the war ravaged country lacked the resources to build the entire airport complex anew. Without dismantling the works already done, no major change was possible. Accordingly, the airport was completed and fully commissioned in September 1980 and was later named as Zia International Airport.

The annual growth rate figures in the past 15 years will give a clear idea as to how traffic to and from Bangladesh through ZIA is growing. The figures will also provide a food for thought as to how long Z1A will be able to sustain the growth without turning into a centre of chaos.

http://www.bangladeshmonitor.net/aviation_story.php?recordID=609

Biman Bangladesh Financial Woes - Cutting International Routes
http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=378869

Guwahati-Dhaka air services in the offing

The North-eastern states of India may soon look forward to get connected with the Bangladesh capital city Dhaka, by air. Bangladesh government in its preliminary response has nodded to a joint proposal by the industrialists and traders of both the countries for initiating air services between Guwahati and Dhaka.

The proposal for connecting the North-east hub with the neighbouring country capital came up first in the joint trade group meeting between the Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) and its Bangladesh counterpart FBCCI, held in Dhaka early this year.

Later in June this year, during the second FICCI-FBCCI meeting that took place in Kolkata, the matter of Guwahati-Dhaka air service resurfaced with both the parties insisting on its materialisation.

“Bangladesh government doesn’t have any problem in giving necessary clearance for the initiation of the air services between Guwahati and Dhaka. But so far as providing the services are concerned, things will solely depend on the private airlines as Biman, the official airlines of Bangladesh, is already overstressed,” said Mr Mohammad Imran, the deputy High Commissioner of Bangladesh in Kolkata.

Mr Imran added, if any of the private airlines from India is interested to launch services in the proposed route, it was most welcome to approach the Bangladesh government. However, the Bangladesh deputy High Commissioner made it clear, till now no such specific proposal has come up be it from the private airlines from Bangladesh or India.

While India has got a few well-established private players in the aviation sector, GMG Airlines happens to be the lone private airlines from Bangladesh. Hence, the onus of launching air services between Guwahati and Dhaka will rest much upon the Indian aviation industry.

“This is a new untested route altogether, hence, it is in all likelihood that before jumping into a venture, any private air service provider will consider its commercial viability,” Mr Imran added.

As of now, the existing air services between India and Bangladesh are been maintained by regular flights from Delhi and Kolkata to Dhaka and Chittagong.

http://www.thestatesman.net/page.news.php?clid=10&theme=&usrsess=1&id=129386

Qatar Airways to operate more flights from Bangladesh

The government is likely to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Qatar Airways, on operation of more flights from Bangladesh to ease the pressure of the Middle East-bound local passengers.

Meanwhile, Biman Bangladesh Airlines held Monday a meeting to discuss payment of arrears to the different national and international organisations in full or partly.

According to a source close to the Biman, under the proposed agreement Qatar Airlines will get the opportunity to operate three more flights from Chittagong Shah Amanat International Airport.

A delegation, led by the minister of Civil Aviation and Tourism, is leaving Dhaka today (Tuesday) for Doha to discuss the MoU with Qatar Airways, said a source.

Meanwhile, a leader of the Bangladesh Airlines Pilots Association (BAPA), requesting for anonymity, said this will be a very important decision for the Biman allowing Qatar Airways to operate more flights, as most of the Middle East-bound passengers of Biman come from the Chittagong region.

Citing the route as profitable for Biman, he said if the government, in fact, allows Qatar Airways, this will further pose a threat to the survival of Biman. Besides, other airline operators in Bangladesh might also demand the same facilities.

Currently, Qatar Airways operates six flights from Dhaka against the Bangladesh Biman's operation of two flights from Doha, he mentioned.
Meanwhile, a foreign ministry source said if Qatar Airways is allowed to operate more flights from here, this will help send more Bangladeshi manpower to Qatar.

Around 98,105 Bangladeshis have now been employed in Qatar, the foreign ministry source said adding if the airlines is allowed to operate more flights, the country's manpower export will be invariably increased undoubtedly.

However, another source said the government is now planning to offer 40 per cent of equity of Biman to foreign airlines aiming to transfer its management.
A further nine per cent of the equity of the Biman will go its employees, added the source.

Talking to a group of journalists, Enam Ahmed Chowdhury, Chairman of the Privatisation Commission, on September 17 said if the government policy remained unchanged for one and a half years, the bidding for Biman's privatisation could be possible.

http://www.financialexpress-bd.com/index3.asp?cnd=9/19/2006&section_id=1&newsid=38102&spcl=no

GMG flies to three more overseas destinations

GMG Airlines will launch flights to three more international destinations in October.

Bangladesh’s only private airliner will operate flights to Bangkok, Katmandu and New Delhi from October 20, GMG spokesman Bijoy Al Reza told the news agency Friday.

GMG will fly to Bangkok from Dhaka and Chittagong twice a week and to New Delhi and Katmandu thrice a week, Reza said.

The airline hired two MD-82 aircraft from the US to operate flights on the new routes and will publish flight schedules in newspapers soon, he said.

GMG began its operations on April 6, 1998 with two hired Canadian Dash-8 aircraft to domestic destinations and extended flights to Chittagong, Barisal, Jessore, Cox’s Bazar and Sylhet.

The airline made its international debut in 2004 with a Chittagong-to-Kolkata flight.

http://www.newagebd.com/busi.html

Zia International Airport in Dhaka
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Inside newly renovated Zia International airport

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Nice photos Nayeem. How has the airport changed? Shops, restaurants?

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[QUOTE=Tmac;10053793]Nice photos Nayeem. How has the airport changed? Shops, restaurants?[QUOTE]

Among my few trips to Bangladesh this was the first time I was actually impressed by the change in Zia INternational airport. There has been numerous changes, starting from cyber cafe, few fast food shops to duty free area. Above all there has been change in the immigration and luggage area with more booths and conveyer belts being added..

Malaysia Airlines to operate daily flights from this month

Malaysia Airlines will be flying to Bangladesh daily from this month (October), up from the present five times a week. Nur Shaffik Haris, Area Manager Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan, Malaysia Airlines was addressing a Travel Agents Seminar at Pan Pacific Sonargaon on September 28.
Abacus was the Co-sponsor of the seminar.

The daily fights will open up new opportunities to passengers as it will give them more options to choose from. They can fly any day they like and connections will be more convenient, Haris said.

He thanked the travel agents for their past support and hoped the same would be forthcoming in the days ahead. MAS flies to over 100 destinations with 111 latest aircraft and is serving Bangladesh with Airbus A330s, he said.
Besides announcing the Northern Winter Fares 2006-2007 effective from October 1, 2006 to March 31, 2007 Malaysia Airlines officials described various features the airlines new First, Business and Economy Class seats, new meal selections and inflight entertainment.

Membership of 'Enrich,' the frequent flyer programme of the airline, has been made easier and a new tier 'Silver' added. Enrich miles purchase, transfer and extension have been made easier, they said. They called upon the travel agents to sell more Business Class tickets as Tk 1,000 gift Agora/ Aarong voucher awaits for them with every Business Class tickets sold.

Earlier, Abdul Malek bin Abdul Aziz, Malaysian High Commissioner in Bangladesh and Ahmed Ismail, Managing Director of AKTEL, Nur Shaffik Haris, Area Manager of Malaysia Airlines Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan, Malaysia Airlines jointly launched "Showcase Malaysia 2006" at Hotel Sarina in the city on September 20.

Haris said, several special packages for holiday makers from Bangladesh have been designed for next three months to visit Malaysia. A package for three days and two nights to Kuala Lumpur will cost as low as US $ 370 meaning that by adding only US $ 15 with the regular airfare of Dhaka-Kuala-Lumpur Dhaka passenger can get two nights hotel accommodation with breakfast and return transfer between airport and hotel.

The other packages are offered for other cities are Penang, Langkawi, Kota Kinabalu, Kuching and Genting Highland. Packages include return air fare on Economy Class and daily breakfast. Meet and Greet at airport and return airport transfer are also included in the packages.

There will be also 102 free tickets offered during next three months promotion period for the lucky winner participating SMS competition using AKTEL connections. In addition to that in the last month of the promotion 60 nights free hotel will be offered in Kuala Lumpur.

Malaysia Airlines, Tourism Malaysia and AKTEL have more plans to go with joint promotion in future to promote Malaysia as preferred destination for leisure, students and medical tourism. Tourism Malaysia has announced year 2007 as Visit Malaysia 2007 to further enhance the visitor's arrival to Malaysia.

Keeping the motto "Committed to keeping you clearly ahead"- AKTEL has always brought in new additions in their product range to benefit their customers. Showcase Malaysia is one such step taken to let the AKTEL customers have a rewarding opportunity to visit Malaysia, he added

http://www.bangladeshmonitor.net/aviation_story.php?recordID=662

GMG Airlines on the threshold of new era : Ready to start operation on three more international routes

GMG Airlines, the lone private sector airline in the country is on the threshold of a new era. The airline is set to expand its international presence with operations to Bangkok, New Delhi and Kathmandu from October 20, 2006.
Formal announcement in this regard was made by Sahab Sattar, Managing Director and Ismail R Chowdhury, Deputy Managing Director of the airline at a largely attended function on September 22 at Bangladesh-China Friendship Conference Centre. A large number of travel agents from Dhaka, Chittagong and Sylhet were present at the function.

The airline launched the slogan "Together We Can" and sought the cooperation of all concerned, specially the travel agents, to make the slogan a reality.

Under the expansion programme, the airline will operate from Dhaka three direct flights a week to Bangkok and two flights a week via Chittagong, three flights a week to New Delhi and three flights a week to Kathmandu.
The daily flight to Kolkata from Dhaka and thrice a week flights to Kolkata from Chittagong will remain unchanged.

The airline has dry leased two 153-seat MD-82 aircraft from the US to operate flights on the new routes. The airliners will have 16 Business Class and 137 Economy Class seats.

The two aircraft are expected to join the fleet by October 7, 2006.
It has a fleet of 2 Bombardier Dash 8 Q100 and 1 Bombardier Dash 8 Q300. GMG has already bought one of these three aircraft, the other two are still on lease. It may be recalled that GMG began its operations on April 6, 1998 with two hired Canadian Dash-8 aircraft to domestic destinations. Current domestic scheduled destinations from Dhaka are Barisal, Chittagong, Cox's Bazar, Jessore and Sylhet.

GMG Airlines, is the only surviving private airline of Bangladesh and has earned itself the permission to fly on international routes after providing efficient and reliable service for all these years.

The airline, over the years, has developed the required infrastructure to operate on international routes. It is a member of IATA's MITA (Multilateral Interline Traffic Agreement) and also of IATA's clearinghouse. As the final step to start operations on international routes, GMG Airlines now only needs the necessary permissions from the governments of the destination countries and is ready to start its international operations as soon as these clearances are received.

On July 3, 2001, the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism issued the landmark circular on deregulation of international routes, allowing private carriers to operate them. In 1995 private airlines were allowed to operate on domestic routes.

GMG Airlines applied for license and made most of the exercise needed to start operations on international routes following deregulation of certain international routes. With strong hope that permission is forthcoming GMG Airlines under took a number of exercises and studies to asses the market situation and get ready for international operation. Two main studies were on fleet and route. Since it was not at that time not known on which routes the private airlines will be allowed to operate, GMG studied various options. These options included routes in South Asia and routes in Middle East.
On the basis of these studies, the airline also did fleet planning. All these were done to minimise waiting time between permission and start of operation.
GMG Airlines got the licence to operate on selected international routes in the later part of 2001. The then State Minister for Civil Aviation and Tourism Syed Ashraful Islam said, 'It is something GMG has earned. And they have earned it well. Over the years they have shown the way how to manage an airline efficiently, how to carve out their own market share. They have not cut into Biman's pie. Just as they have done in the domestic routes, they will create their own market on international routes and help save precious foreign exchange."

This historic landmark decision opened a new chapter in the history of Civil Aviation in Bangladesh. The areas opened with immediate effect were to anywhere in the world except Middle East from Shah Amanat International Airport, Chittagong and to Paro, Bhutan; Chennai, Shillong and Guwahati in India from Zia International Airport, Dhaka.

The airline made its international debut with flight on Chittagong- Kolkata-Chittagong route. Three months later in December, the airline started flight to Kolkata from Dhaka. Still Kolkata is the only international destination of GMG. The decision of CAAB comes after GMG Airlines was issued Provisional ATOL on September 25, 2003 and later fulfillment of all requirements as per Civil Aviation Rules of 1984.

Speaking on the occasion Shahab Sattar informed that his airline was talking to Biman for code-share arrangement on Dhaka-Bangkok route. If the code-sharing agreement comes off, GMG will be able to increase frequency on Dhaka-Bangkok-Dhaka route.

Sattar recalled the days when GMG started its journey as an airline and said there was doubt about the future. The airline, he said, has carried 20 million satisfied customers so far and now expanding its international network.
Talking about future expansion, Sattar said that GMG is exploring possibility of expanding operation to Kuala Lumpur, Hong Kong, Kunming as well as Guawhati and Mumbai in India.

Sattar expressed confidence that difficult period for GMG is over and the airline from now on, will serve the community and people better with commercial success. He mentioned that the airline is five years late in getting permission to operate on international routes.

At the function, organised to announce expansion plan of the airline, awards were distributed to a large number of travel agents from Chittagong, Sylhet, Kolkata and Dhaka.

http://www.bangladeshmonitor.net/aviation_story.php?recordID=669

Kuwait Airways starts flying daily to Dhaka from Sept 18

Kuwait Airways has started flying daily to Dhaka from September 18, Qais Al Shatti, Senior Manager-Bangladesh, Kuwait Airways said while addressing a Top Agents Award giving ceremony and introduction of Wings Tours and Travels, the airline's new General Sales Agency at Utshab Banquet Hall at Radisson Water Garden Hotel on September 16.


Introducing Wings Tours and Travels as the airline's GSA in Bangladesh, Qais Al Shatti said, "We strongly believe that the strength of Kuwait Airways will be further enhanced in the Bangladesh market with its induction."

Mushtaq Ahmed, Chairman, Wings Tours and Travels, said his organisation has been associated with travel and freight forwarding business for the past two decades.

"Our growth during the past two decades have been significant" and for this he thanked clients, bankers and staff members of the Wings Group of which his company is a component "for these achievements."

"On our part, we can assure Kuwait Airways and all its past and potential customers, that we will endeavour our best to provide all of you best of services to ensure that Kuwait Airways' service standards will always be held high.

Mushtaq Ahmed hoped that Kuwait Airways' daily service to Dhaka will broaden the service base and the capacity of our customers to take advantage of it.

Expressing gratitude to the top performing passenger and cargo agents for their contributions in the growth of Kuwait Airways' market share from Bangladesh, he expressed the confidence that they would continue to support the airline's sales in the coming years too.

http://www.bangladeshmonitor.net/aviation_story.php?recordID=659

Best Air to launch flights next year

Best Aviation Ltd, a privately owned Bangladesh aircraft service, will launch domestic and international passenger flights early next year. Chairman of the company M Haider Uz Zaman disclosed this at the departure of an aircraft of the company for Kenya for joining the United Nations mission, said a press release.

Best Aviation got an invitation from Africa to support the UN for its humanitarian aid in East Africa, leasing its aircraft to Astral Aviation of Kenya, Haider said.

The aircraft HS-748 with Bangladeshi registration number S2- ABE departed Zia International Airport for Nairobi Saturday morning. Captain Fernando, Captain Santos and First officer Ahad will fly the aircraft to Kenya and carry out its flight operations.

Zaman, Chairman of IPSSL Group, said the company received license from the Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) to start the international and domestic passenger flight services and the company is now taking preparation to start its flight operations from early 2007.

Best Air would operate its flights through Art B 747, B 737 and other aircraft in the international and domestic routes, he said adding that it has already applied to CAAB for the necessary clearance of the aircraft and the routes.

http://www.newagebd.com/busi.html

Banglalink launches 5-year beautification scheme at ZIA International Airport

Banglalink, a cellphone operator, has embarked on a five-year beautification and development programme inside the Zia International Airport (ZIA) to make the airport a world class one.

As the ZIA seems to have lost its attraction in recent years and its external beauty is faded away, the Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) recently took initiatives aiming to make the airport a truly international airport, and to create a quality environment for the passengers.

Banglalink has volunteered to support this initiative as soon as the CAAB takes up the project.

The CAAB has accepted the Banglalink's proposal and the mobile phone operating company has already started its activities in changing the face of ZIA in a very short time.

Under the project, Banglalink has already set up several phone booths, mobile charging points, a fountain and several tapestries inside the ZIA.

State Minister for Civil Aviation and Tourism Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir formally inaugurated the programme on the ZIA premises yesterday.

Besides 15 phone booths and 15 mobile charging points, various types of tapestries will be set up inside the airport.

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State Minister for Civil Aviation and Tourism Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir (2-L) receives passenger trolleys from Banglalink CEO Rashid Khan (L) at the Zia International Airport yesterday. The cellphone operator has embarked on a five-year beautification and development programme at the airport

Not only these phones will be used for enhancing the customers' experience of the airport but also the revenue earned from these will be shared with the CAAB, Banglalink officials said, adding that the company also offered some 1500 passenger trolleys to the CAAB.

They said they will also place some pieces of sculptures inside the airport. Banglalink will spend around Tk 15 crore for the five-year project.

"Banglalink strongly believes that communication facilities also contribute to the overall socio-economic development of the country," said Rashid Khan, chief executive officer of Banglalink, addressing the inaugural programme.

"We will also take up similar beautification and development projects at other airports of the country," he said.

Speaking at the function, the state minister said the Banglalink's beautification programme will help the CAAB in improving facilities at the ZIA for turning it into a smarter airport of international standard.

http://www.thedailystar.net/2006/10/18/d61018050262.htm

ZIA beautification, development project opens

State Minister for Civil Aviation and Tourism Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir Tuesday inaugurated the beautification and development project at Zia International Airport (ZIA) premises, jointly undertaken by Banglalink and the Civil Aviation Authority.

Under the project, Banglalink has imported 1,000 trolleys from Germany for carrying luggage of passengers and established a glass-fountain, 15 phone booths and 15 mobile charging points. It has also taken initiative to supply boarding bridges at the airport.
Besides, Banglalink will spend Tk 150 million (15 crore) in next five years for ZIA's beautification and development.

Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism Secretary (in-charge) Md Shahid Alam, Banglalink Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Rashid Khan and Air Commodore Sakeb Iqbal Khan Majlis were also present on the occasion as distinguished guests.

The state minister in his speech on the occasion said, efforts like this would help develop the country's image to the foreign visitors and attract them to visit the country. Besides, the facilities of the passengers at ZIA would also increase, he added. The Banglalink CEO said, his company is frequently engaged in the country's socio-economic development as part of its corporate social responsibility (CSR).
Citing the project as the beginning, he said Banglalink will gradually implement the same type of project to the country's other airports.
The project would contribute to transform the ZIA into a truly international airport, and also create a suitable environment for the valued passengers during their stay here, said a high official of the Biman.

http://www.financialexpress-bd.com/index3.asp?cnd=10/18/2006&section_id=1&newsid=41194&spcl=no

Druk Air resumes Dhaka flights

Royal Bhutan Airlines (the national airlines of Bhutan)—will resume its flights to Dhaka on October 23 with new airbus. A Druk Air press release said two flights from Dhaka to Bangkok on Monday and Thursday will leave Dhaka at 10:30 hrs and reach Bangkok at 13:40 hrs while Bangkok-Dhaka flight on Tuesday and Friday leave Bangkok at 8:30 hrs.

http://www.newagebd.com/busi.html

The airport has changed significantly in the last few years. Inside its a lot more modern thhen it used to be and its a lot mroe spacious as well. But does anyone know if their working n the transportation links of he airport though because the last time i went, the traffic in front of the gates was absolutely horrible.

Two local airlines to kick off flights from Dhaka early next year

Two local airlines are likely to begin operation of their domestic flights from Dhaka early next year and the international flights gradually, as Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) has already issued them provisional licenses.

The airlines -- Best Aviation and United Airlines -- are taking necessary preparation to begin their flights, said the airlines sources.

Best Aviation, an IPSSL Group Company, has completed all the formalities to lease two aircrafts B-747 and B-737 from Indonesia and applied already for necessary clearance for the aircraft and routes.

The domestic routes that Best Aviation planned are Dhaka-Chittagong and Dhaka-Sylhet, while international routes are Dhaka-Kolkata, Dhaka-Jaipur, Dhaka-Bangkok and Dhaka-Kathmandu, said Best Aviation Chairman Haider Uz Zaman.

Initially, the Best Aviation will operate one aircraft to the international destinations, two flights on Dhaka-Chittagong route and one on Dhaka-Sylhet route.

The other airline -- United Airways will lease three 56-seated aircraft from Holland and signed a Letter of Intent with its agency in Singapore, said the private airline's managing director Captain Tasbirul Ahmed Choudhury.

The domestic routes of United Airways will be on Dhaka-Sylhet, Dhaka-Chittagong, Dhaka-Jessore, Dhaka-Cox's Bazar and Dhaka-Barisal routes, while the international flights will be initially on Dhaka-Kolkata and Dhaka-Katmandu routes.

Everyday there will be one flight on Dhaka-Cox's Bazar and Dhaka-Barisal routes and 5 to 3 flights on Dhaka-Chittagong, Dhaka-Sylhet and Dhaka-Jessore routes.

"We are expecting to begin international flights six months after the beginning of the domestic flights," Captain Tasbirul told The Daily Star.

"We have applied for the route clearances and finalise the routes and flight design soon after we secure such clearances," he added.

Both the airlines officials promised to maintain quality and make airfares competitive.

The airfare for domestic services of United Airways will be a bit higher than the Bangladesh Biman charges, but lower than that of the other private airlines GMG, said the MD of United Airways.

Packages are also being designed for the passengers, especially the expatriate Bangladeshis, as most shares of the airways are accumulated from the expatriates, he further said.

Best Aviation Chairman Haidar Uz Zaman said they would offer special packages to the students availing international routes, allowing them to travel first and then pay in instalments.

http://www.thedailystar.net/2006/10/28/d61028050157.htm

Jessore Airport

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GMG Airlines - McDonnell Douglas MD-82 (DC-9-82) at Dhaka airport, waiting for an afternoon flight to Kathmandu.

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Dhaka Zia International Airport during a takeoff

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http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/bimanaircrafts-1.jpg

I don't know about you guys but this is the only photo I have ever seen of the old Dhaka International Airport in Tejgaon. Enjoy!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/daccaairport.jpg

the old airport is used by the airforce now hence public pictures arent available

Thanks for the old airport photo. It reminds of the trip I made to Nepal through this airport long time ago. I don't think air force uses it that much because they also use ZIA.

ZIA International Airport @ night

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/ZiaInternationalAirport-AtNight--6.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/ZiaInternationalAirport-AtNight--3.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/ZiaInternationalAirport-AtNight--1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/ZiaInternationalAirport-AtNight-Dha.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/ZiaInternationalAirport-AtNight--2.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/ZiaInternationalAirport-AtNight--5.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/ZiaInternationalAirport-AtNight--4.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/ZiaInternationalAirport-AtNight--7.jpg

Qatar Airways may introduce flights from Chittagong

Qatar Airways may introduce direct flights from Chittagong for the benefit of port city residents. Samiur Razzak, sales manager of the airline in Bangladesh, said this yesterday while exchanging views with members of Chittagong Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI) here.

"Qatar Airways is going to revise its fares to become more competitive," he said.

Later, Razzak signed a special corporate agreement with CCCI. Under this agreement, all employees and their immediate family members of all member companies of the chamber will be provided with a special discount airfare by Qatar Airways.

CCCI President Saifuzzaman Chowdhury signed the agreement on behalf of the CCCI.

http://www.thedailystar.net/2006/12/08/d61208051068.htm

China Eastern Airlines opens new routes for Bangladesh passengers

China Eastern Airlines has introduced new routes for passengers from Bangladesh to travel to London, Paris, Frankfurt, Moscow, New York, Los Angeles, Vancouver, Sydney and Melbourne, says a press release.

The flights from Dhaka will leave at 1.55 pm allowing passengers same day connection to most of the destinations. The fares are unusually attractive.

China Eastern Airlines offers free hotel accommodation for transit passengers within the terms as stated in the package.

Besides more than 200 cities in China, passengers from Bangladesh can receive the airline's flights also to Japan, Korea, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Myanmar, Vietnam, Laos, Kampuchea and some other Asian destinations.

http://www.thedailystar.net/2006/12/11/d61211050861.htm

Emirates, more to Dhaka

Emirates is to add three more flights a week to Dhaka from next March, taking the total number to 14 a week according to an airline official cited by Reuters. Emirates Area Manager Hanif Zakaria said the airline would as a consequence operate a twice daily service from Dubai to the Bangladeshi capital. Dhaka was Emirates' seventh destination back in 1986.

http://www.ameinfo.com/104768.html

Emirates to increase flights to Bangladesh

Dubai-based Emirates airline plans to add three more weekly flights to Dhaka raising the number to 14 from March 2007 as part of its plan to expand business in Bangladesh, an official of the airline said on Saturday.

"From March next, we will operate two Dhaka-Dubai flights daily," Emirates area manager Hanif Zakaria told a news conference. Currently Emirates operate 11 flights to Dhaka every week.

Emirates commenced services to Dhaka, its seventh destination, in October 1986, and was celebrating the 20th year anniversary in Bangladesh.

"We have decided to increase flights to accommodate more passengers to and from Bangladesh," he said, without giving any figure.

http://www.ndtvprofit.com/homepage/news.asp?id=279664

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2e/Bangladesh.a310.arp.750pix.jpg

GMG Airlines : Malaysia as air gateway

GMG Airlines sees Malaysia as a gateway to expand into other international markets, said commercial international operations director Virendra Nautiyal. “We are eyeing mid-haul routes. By linking with KLIA, GMG Airlines will have a platform to extend its services to Singapore, the Middle East and Australia,” he told StarBiz.

The privately owned Bangladesh airline is among five new foreign carriers that will start flights to the KL International Airport this year. Virendra said the growing Bangladeshi workforce in the country prompted the company to establish operations in Malaysia.

“We are looking at a potential market size of about 400,000 passengers from Bangladesh over the next few years. This is a good opportunity for us to test the viability of our operations between Bangladesh and Malaysia,” he said.

GMG aims to tap Bangladeshi workforce in the country.

GMG Airlines currently has five aircraft and plans to add two more next year. It will use two MD 82 planes, each with a seating capacity of 153, for its international routes.

Given the strong trade ties between the two countries, the carrier’s focus will be on Malaysian business sector.

Virendra believes the airline is well positioned to provide the link for Malaysian businesses, especially dry-food manufacturers, to market their products in Bangladesh.

http://biz.thestar.com.my/archives/2007/1/3/business/b_06virendra.jpg


“Almost all good grocery stores in Bangladesh have Malaysian food products on display,” he said, adding that trade missions to the country could organise roadshows to market more Malaysia-made products.

The company, he said, would also introduce family holiday packages in conjunction with the Visit Malaysia Year 2007.

“Malaysia is known as a family destination. Besides targeting the Bangladeshi workforce coming into Malaysia, we also want to focus on tourists,” he said, adding that the visa-upon-arrival facility would attract more holidaymakers.

He said Malaysians and foreigners coming to Malaysia could also use the carrier to connect to New Delhi and Kolkata in India and Kathmandu in Nepal.

GMG Airlines has 51 interline partners including British Airways, Emirates, Air France, Garuda Indonesia and Thai Airways. It expects to have 15 more partners soon.

http://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2007/1/3/business/16431676&sec=business

Emirates set to operate two daily flights to Dhaka

Emirates-the award winning fastest growing airline in the world, is all set to operate double daily flights to and from Dhaka from March 2007.

This was announced by Hanif Zakaria, the dynamic Area Manager of the airline in Bangladesh, in Dhaka while formally launching the latest edition of Dubai Shopping Festival-"a favourite of Bangladeshi travellers".

Dubai will once again host the very-successful Dubai Shopping Festival from 20th December 2006 to 2nd February. For the 11th consecutive time, Emirates - the worlds third most profitable and among the fastest-growing 20 largest international airlines - will be a key sponsor and Official Carrier of the world's biggest shopping extravaganza.

This year's, Dubai Shopping Festival, coincides with Emirates' 20th year anniversary in Bangladesh. Emirates commenced services to Dhaka, its seventh destination, towards the end of October 1986, and has consistently enhanced its service and product to remain one of the most preferred international airlines serving, Bangladesh.

Emirate' sponsorship of DSF is in line with the airline's commitment to promote Dubai as a leading tourist destination.

With Emirates' support, DSF has grown phenomenally adding new attractions each passing year. Of Course, the most popular activities like the world's biggest gold and its richest luxury car raffles will continue into DSF 2006. Dubai Shopping Festival is every shoppers dream comes true! The entire emirate becomes one massive shopping mall. With over 40 themed malls, souqs, well-lit streets, shops and boutiques tempting shoppers with dazzling displays, discounts, bargains, incredible offers and promotions, shoppers find themselves amidst an entertaining set-up that enthralls one and all.

"Dubai's shopping centres host the world's finest brands in fashion, jewellery, watches, cosmetics, home accessories, furniture, and electronics. The shopping is supported by winning opportunities presented through various purchase-related raffles and scratch 'n' win promotions. Furthermore, the festival brings together world renowned music shows, art exhibitions, and folk dances that make your shopping experience a truly memorable one. The entire emirate will take on a carnival atmosphere. There is something for every member of the family.

Independent shops are generally open from 10am until I pm and from 4.30pm until I0 pm. Shopping malls typically stay open throughout the day from 10am - I0pm. However, on Fridays, they open from 2pm - l0pm. Some even stay open until midnight! The Global Village, the biggest draw during DSF, will remain open for two and half months till 31st March.

Bangladeshis can enjoy all this and more with Emirates for as little as US$66 per person per night, excluding airfare.

Emirates' special DSF packages offer a range of prices, properties and benefits to satisfy the needs of our Bangladeshi customers, especially families. They are valid for the duration of the event and include breakfast, all accommodation related taxes and service charges", Hanif said and added "the exceptional value-for-money packages offer a choice of 18 select properties to suit all budgets. Customers can choose between two-three-four- and five-star properties like the Hyatt Regency, Taj Palace Hotel, Shangri-la Hotel, Traders Hotel and Pearl Residence.

The package offered by Emirates, guarantee customers peace of mind while they enjoy the excitement and non-stop fun at DSF. "Emirates' guests experience our famous Arabian hospitality from the moment they arrive at the Dubai International Airport - personalised meet-and-assist services, welcome packs and transfers to their hotels in chauffeur-driven cars", Hanif said.

When they leave Dubai with suitcases full of goodies, each visitor will receive an additional 10 kilos of free baggage allowance.

And there is more. Emirates is also offering its customers a 10 per cent discount on hotel room tariff for packages booked online at www.eniirates.com

In Dubai stopover charges for onward bound passengers have been waived, another incentive for Bangladeshis to enjoy the shopping festival.

Besides offering these attractive packages, Emirates has also pledged to support the fest through a worldwide publicity blitz. Major promotional campaigns have been rolled out across Emirates' network which now spans 59 countries including Bangladesh.

The brightly-coloured DSF logo will soon be visible on Emirates' aircraft.

Earlier, in celebration of its 20th year anniversary, Emirates. launched the 20:20 offer entitling its First and Business class passengers to avail of a 20 per cent discount when travelling to any of the airline's 20 European gateways. The 20:20 offer closely followed the introduction of two additional frequencies, bringing the total number of weekly flights to Dhaka to 11. In another enhancement of services, Emirates' Dhaka office now processes visas for 96 hours to two months on payment of certain fees. Passengers can book their flights, select their seats and check-in online from the comfort of their homes using our user-friendly website.

http://nation.ittefaq.com/artman/publish/article_33197.shtml

few more photos of the GMG Airlines.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/gmgairlines4.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/gmgairlines5.jpg

nice pics! wow bangla aviation is really booming. seeing this makes me feel like theres a bangldesh thread itself :)

When will GMG operates in Malaysia ?

Air Slovakia set to operate flights from Dhaka

Air Slovakia is set to operate its Europe-bound flights from Dhaka on March 26, the Independent Day of Bangladesh. As per a bilateral agreement signed recently between Bangladesh and Slovakia, the Air Slovakia will operate four flights a week from Dhaka. The flights will be operated from Dhaka to Bratislava, the capital of the member-state of the European Union, via London. Member (operation and planning) of Bangladesh Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) Group Captain Shah Alam and the Deputy Director of Communication, Post and Telecommunication Ministry of Slovakia signed the agreement on behalf of their respective countries. Civil Aviation and Tourism Secretary Shahid Alam, CAA Chairman Iqbal Khan Majlish, Air Slovakia Chairman HS Sidhu and other top officials of the two countries were present at the contract signing ceremony held on January 17.

http://www.newagebd.com/busi.html

Recently an announcement has been made that AIREST is looking into the skies of Bangladesh.

With all due respect, who will be flying from Dhaka to Bratislava? Why the need for this many flights to Slovakia?

With all due respect, who will be flying from Dhaka to Bratislava? Why the need for this many flights to Slovakia?


the flight route is Dhaka-London-Bratislava. I am sure Dhaka-London will be a full flight.

With so many competitors, can Biman stay in business?

With so many competitors, can Biman stay in business?

Biman's problem is not competition, it's corruption and inept management.

GMG Airlines launches Dhaka-KL service

Bangladesh's private airline, GMG Airlines, started its thrice-weekly flights from Dhaka to here yesterday, eyeing 22,000 passengers yearly.

The airline was confident the number could increase to 60,000 if it was granted rights to daily flights, said Manjit Singh Malli, general manager of Carnival Travel, GMG's general sales agent.

This is because Malaysia is a popular family holiday destination for the Bangladeshis as it has numerous tourist attractions and is know as a halal food hub.

GMG is the third foreign airline to land in Kuala Lumpur in the new year, the other two are Russia's Transaero and UAE's Etihad.

http://www.travelweeklyweb.com/article.asp?articleid=18908

GMG launches direct flight to Malaysia

GMG Airlines, the country's first private airliner has launched its direct flight operations between Dhaka and Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur.

The flight will be operated thrice in a week.

After successful operations of flights on Dhaka-Kolkata, Dhaka-Katmandu, Dhaka-Delhi and Dhaka-Bangkok routes, the GMG Airlines authorities launched their flight operations on the fifth international route.

The 150-seat aircraft with 137 passengers on board went to Kuala Lumpur Airport on January 24.

Apart from the travel tax fixed by the government, a passenger will have to pay US$ 340 to reach Kuala Lumpur from Dhaka.

Shahab Sattar, Managing Director of GMG Airlines, who was also accompanied the passengers, told journalists that introduction of the Dhaka-Kuala Lumpur flight would substantially save the foreign currency of Bangladesh.

The GMG Airlines Managing Director said the foreign airliners controlled some 70 per cent of the market share of the aviation industry of Bangladesh. About 70 per cent of the international passengers of Bangladesh go to the Middle Eastern countries, which is entirely dominated by the foreign airlines. It means that foreign airlines have been taking away about US$ 1.1 billion from Bangladesh every year. Besides, Biman Bangladesh Airlines has been losing its passengers owing to shortage of aircraft.

"We hope that we would be able to hold back US$ 200-300 million, out of US$ 1.1 billion through the introduction of our flights on regional and international routes," he said.

Explaining about the future plan of GMG Airlines, Shahab Sattar said, "Our ultimate objective is to establish ourselves as a major carrier in Bangladesh and South Asia."

The airlines officials said that the GMG Airlines' connectivity had been expanded further through the introduction of Dhaka-Kuala Lumpur flights.

"It will generate confidence among people, particularly the businessmen that a Bangladeshi private airliner can go to Kuala Lumpur," he said.

http://nation.ittefaq.com/artman/publish/article_33623.shtml

With all due respect, who will be flying from Dhaka to Bratislava? Why the need for this many flights to Slovakia?

i dont know bro :laugh:

from bratislava are regular flights only to punjub i think.

and namaste to you all :cheers:
(i am sorry if you dont know hindi, but i saw on your airport photos dewangari alphabet. i must ask my indian friends, which language you speaks in bangladesh)

PS: priyanka chopra rulez ;)

oh, i know why dhaka. because new owner of Air Slovakia is indian bussinessman. But its shame, that there are no flights to delhi or mumbai, but only to dhaka and to punjub somewhere.

GMG Airlines in Cox's Bazar Airport

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v457/Dhaka/gmggcoxsbazar.jpg

Malaysian Airlines in Dhaka Zia International Airport

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/dhakaairport35-1.jpg

i dont know bro :laugh:

from bratislava are regular flights only to punjub i think.

and namaste to you all :cheers:
(i am sorry if you dont know hindi, but i saw on your airport photos dewangari alphabet. i must ask my indian friends, which language you speaks in bangladesh)

PS: priyanka chopra rulez ;)


lol thats actually a different alphabet from hindi, kinda like russian and english, similar looking but very different. We speak bangla in bangladesh (hence the word bangla on our country name).

^^ As languages go, Bangla is pretty close to Hindi. Both are derived from Sanskrit. They both belong to the Indo-European language family, having the same Aryan ancestry as languages such as English and Persian. Bangla, like English, started becoming a distinct language about 1,000 years ago.

^^ As languages go, Bangla is pretty close to Hindi. Both are derived from Sanskrit. They both belong to the Indo-European language family, having the same Aryan ancestry as languages such as English and Persian. Bangla, like English, started becoming a distinct language about 1,000 years ago.

no i meant as in writing. I can't make out any hindi characters even though i can read bangla pretty well. Its not like french and english where the characters are pretty much the same.

Dhaka Zia International Airport

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/dhakaairport40-1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/dhakaairport44.jpg

some of the foreign airlines at Dhaka Airport.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/dhakaairport42.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/dhakaairport41.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/dhakaairport43.jpg

When are they planning to get rid of the DC10s

If only Biman would be converted to a Low Cost Airline

Emirates’ goes to ‘double-daily operation’ from Dhaka

Emirates is to increase the frequency of its daily flights to Bangladesh in an effort to cash in on the country's rapidly growing market for air travel.

The Dubai-based operator will raise its flight numbers to 14 a week from the existing 11 weekly flights from March 25 this year, Hanif Zakaria, area manager of Emirates Bangladesh, said at a press conference in Dhaka yesterday.

The increased flight frequency will add capacity for an extra 800 passengers and 41 tones of cargo a week.

Zakaria said: "The international aircraft passenger market in the country has been showing 8-10 percent growth where the growth rate is around 6-7 percent in neighboring countries," he pointed out.

Emirates is becoming more popular among the passengers here for its modern services, said Zakaria adding that currently 17 foreign and two domestic airlines are operating in Bangladesh where Emirates has between 25 and 30 percent market share.

He further said the new flights would help travelers, businessmen and expatriates. Earlier, Emirates increased its flight to 10 in September 2006 and to 11 in October due to huge passenger demand.

Zakaria said now Emirates operates flights in Bangladesh only through Zia International Airport and they are waiting for government approval to begin operation from Chittagong Shah Amanat International Airport.

Now the world's fastest growing airline, Emirates began operation in 1985. The airline currently flies to 87 destinations in 59 countries around the world, its website states.

In the fiscal year 2005-2006, Emirates carried 14.5 million passengers and one million tonnes of cargo.

Emirates started operation in Bangladesh in 1986.

http://www.thedailystar.net/2007/02/13/d70213050668.htm

Backers sought for Bangladesh flights
By David Millward, Transport Correspondent

Competition to provide flights for one of Britain's largest ethnic communities is set to intensify with a businessman seeking investors to start an airline linking Stansted and Bangladesh.

Having researched the project for the past 18 months, Belal Rouf has drawn up plans for the new carrier, Airest, which would operate three return flights to Dhaka a week. Mr Rouf said Airest would run direct services without any stop-overs.

With plans for offices in the heart of London's Bangladeshi community, Brick Lane, in the East End, he has targeted the 300,000 people who make regular trips home to see friends and family as well as business traffic. Stansted has been chosen because it is near to where many potential passengers live. The airline is also looking to serve diplomatic staff based in London.

Mr Rouf also plans to launch a price war with fares starting from £430, against £499.90 upwards offered by its rivals.

The company plans to use a Boeing 767-300 ER. It will have 12 first-class seats, with premium passengers living within 31 miles of the airport offered chauffeured services. As well as a charter passenger service, it will also carry jute, leather and fish.

Mr Rouf expects the airline to be profitable within two years with planes 90pc full overall. During the June to December peak, the planes should be full. By the end of 2009, his projections suggest an annual turnover of £18m and a net profit of £1.4m.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/main.jhtml?xml=/money/2007/02/13/cnbangla13.xml

partial view of the main terminal of Dhaka Zia International Airport

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/dhakaairport57.jpg

Inside a Biman Bangladesh Airlines flight

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/bimaninsidephoto.jpg

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/52/187108298_7a8747dcae_b.jpg

Biman food looks good. I liked Biman food when I used to fly them.

British Bangladeshis launch Manchester to Dhaka link

A NEW airline hopes to end the "misery" of passengers travelling to Bangladesh from Manchester.

The Royal Bengal Airline is the first airline to be owned and run by British born Bangladeshis and they hope they can make flying much easier and comfortable for their passengers.

The directors held an exclusive seminar in Oldham's Menzies Hotel to announce the launch of its domestic and regional services.

Over 200 guests attended the invitation only seminar, organised by Fortune PR, where Royal Bengal Airline informed the audience that it has agreed to buy their first two domestic aircraft and are due to launch their domestic and regional services in Bangladesh within the next couple of months.

Managing director, Shalim Rahman said: "The desire to establish an airline has been a burning ambition of all those involved. The founding members as well as frequent travellers to Bangladesh are not only frustrated by the primitive services offered by existing airlines but were also inspired by the belief that a new British Bangladeshi owned airline could revolutionise the air travel experience in Southeast Asia."

Royal Bengal Airline hopes to develop a route from Manchester to Dhaka as well as its initial routes from London Stanstead to the Bangladesh capital.

Said Mr Rahman: "We carried out a survey on the experiences of travellers to Bangladesh. Time and time again we have been told that people often have a miserable journeys where flights are delayed, luggage often arrives three days late and passengers often travel in cramped conditions.

"They are fed up and want to have an easier journey to the subcontinent."

Community leaders and local businessmen extended their words of encouragement.

Chair of Greater Sylhet Council UK, JP Monchab Ali welcomed the Royal Bengal Airline management team.

He said: "I am delighted to learn that third generation Bangladeshis are working on this project, but what is further encouraging is to see the professionalism and high levels of standards that is being demonstrated by our children”

http://www.theasiannews.co.uk/business/s/223/223866_british_bangladeshis_launch_manchester_to_dhaka_link_.html

Royal Bengal Airline plans routes to Dhaka

A new airline is looking to begin flights between the UK and Bangladesh.

Royal Bengal Airline, the first airline to be operated by British-born Bangladeshis, held a seminar in Oldham earlier this month to introduce plans that will see new air links to Dhaka from London Stansted, Birmingham and Manchester.

Start dates are yet to be confirmed, but a provisional timetable indicates that the Birmingham and Stansted flights will depart the UK at between 8.30am and 9am.

A spokesman explained the motivation behind the airline: "The founding members as well as frequent travellers to Bangladesh are not only frustrated by the primitive services offered by existing airlines but were also inspired by the belief that a new British Bangladeshi-owned airline could revolutionise the air travel experience in south-east Asia."

Royal Bengal also plans to launch domestic and regional air services in Bangladesh "within the next couple of months".

Currently, British Airways offers flights from London to Dhaka from around £250 one-way (including taxes).

http://news.cheapflights.co.uk/flights/2007/02/royal_bengal_ai.html

Air tie-up on Dhaka route

http://www.telegraphindia.com/1070228/images/28air.jpg

Indian airlines has temporarily withdrawn its aircraft on the Calcutta-Dhaka route and entered into an arrangement with GMG Airlines.

According to the agreement, passengers buying Indian tickets on the Calcutta-Dhaka sector will fly on a GMG craft.

“We decided on the arrangement due to operational reasons. The move is on a temporary basis,” said an Indian spokesperson.

The airline used to operate two flights a week to Dhaka. Biman Bangladesh operates three daily flights, while GMG has daily flights. On Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, it operates two flights.

Air-India operates three flights from Dhaka to Calcutta, which proceed to London.

“The agreement has come into effect from today. We are expecting 15 per cent passenger growth due to this,” said a GMG spokesperson.

The Dhaka-based carrier started its Calcutta operations in 2004 with an MD Boeing 82 aircraft with a capacity of 150 passengers. Indian used to operate an Airbus 320, with the same capacity.

As part of the agreement, Indian will revive its presence on the Calcutta-Chittagong sector with a GMG aircraft that flies on the route thrice a week.

According to aviation industry insiders, shortage of aircraft and the need to cut costs has prompted the Indian move.

Jet Airways and Air Sahara are planning to launch Calcutta-Dhaka services soon.

http://www.telegraphindia.com/1070228/asp/calcutta/story_7448757.asp

Dhaka Airport scene

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/dhakaairport59.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/dhakaairport58.jpg

GMG Airlines

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/dhakaairport60.jpg

Inside a GMG Airlines flight

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/gmgairlines8.jpg

Zia International gets served by Gulf Air 11 times a week, leading to some days seeing 2 Gulf Air aircrafts at Dhaka at the same time. This aircraft, in Gulf Traveller scheme, is bound for Muscat. The other flight goes to Bahrain.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/dhakaairport56-1.jpg

GMG signs deal to fly Indian Airlines passengers

GMG Airlines has signed a deal to carry passengers of Indian Airlines on three routes to India. The routes are: Dhaka-Kolkata, Chittagong-Kolkata and Dhaka-Delhi. GMG General Manager Irfan Haq told the news agency Friday that it was a code sharing agreement between the two airlines, which has become effective from March 1. In the code sharing partnership, Indian Airlines will sell tickets for the three routes and GMG will carry passengers.

http://www.financialexpress-bd.com/index3.asp?cnd=3/3/2007&section_id=1&newsid=54249&spcl=no

GMG signs deal to carry Indian Air passengers

GMG Airlines has signed a deal to carry passengers of Indian Airlines on three routes to India.

The routes are Dhaka-Kolkata, Chittagong-Kolkata and Dhaka-Delhi.

GMG general manager Irfan Haq said on Friday, ‘It was a code sharing agreement between the two airlines, which was effective from March 1.’

In the code sharing partnership, Indian Airlines will sell tickets for the three routes and GMG will carry passengers.

‘Indian Airlines came to agreement because of the poor number of passengers. The agreement brings glory to GMG as well as Bangladesh,’ Haq said.

Another Indian airline, Air India, operates three flights a week from Dhaka to Kolkata, Dhaka to Delhi and Dhaka to London.

GMG flies Dhaka-Kolkata route seven days a week and Chittagong-Kolkata and Dhaka-Delhi routes three days a week.

GMG went international with flights to Kolkata three years ago. It started operating flights to Bangkok, Kathmandu and New Delhi on October 20 last year.

The private airline has domestic flights to Chittagong, Jessore, Cox’s Bazar and Sylhet. GMG started its journey on April 6, 1998.

http://www.newagebd.com/busi.html

random Dhaka ZIA International Airport scene

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/dhakaairport65.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/dhakaairport66.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/dhakaairport67.jpg

Air Sylhet - flights start this summer....

flights from Birmingham, Manchester and Heathrow to Dhaka and Sylhet.

http://www.airsylhet.com/img/mainpic.jpg

http://www.airsylhet.com/

great find tmac... with air sylhet and royal bengal airlines expatriates are really taking the initiative to tap our growing aviation market.

^^

The plane in the picture is an Airbus A320 model plane. This is a single isle plane with around 3000 mile range with 150 seats. So, this plane will not be able to fly non-stop. It will take at least one stoppage to get to BD. I don't think a narrow body plane will be comfortable for flying such a long distance. The journey will take 10+ hours to complete. Competition will be fierce with world class airlines such as Emirates, Etihad, Qatar airways, BA etc.

^^ I still think that's a good start. Long-range aircraft tend to cost a lot more and usually have more capacity (777, 747, A330, A340, etc), which the new airlines may not be able to attract just yet.

Biman crash closes Dubai airport

Fortunately, no loss of life but 14 injured taken to hospital. Flight BG006 from London Heathrow was taking off after it's standard stop at Dubai bound for Dhaka.


http://www.daijiworld.com/images1/031207_news_air-2.jpg

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6440747.stm

Biman Bangladesh Airbus A310 accident closes Dubai International Airport

A Biman Bangladesh Airlines Airbus A310-300 has been involved in a take-off accident at Dubai International Airport, resulting in a temporary closure of the Gulf airport.

http://www.flightglobal.com/assets/getAsset.aspx?ItemID=16793

The A310 – one of four operated by the airline, according to Flight’s ACAS database – was operating a service to Dhaka. Some reports suggest the aircraft suffered a tyre burst and/or nose-gear collapse during its take-off roll. Pictures of the accident show that the aircraft appears to have come to rest at the far end of Runway 12L with its nose gear collapsed.

Biman Bangladesh says that its “flight BG006 from Dubai to Dhaka had an accident during departure and failed to take off around 06:30 today. All 236 passengers, including crew, are safe, and were immediately evacuated from the aircraft. Fourteen passengers sustained minor injuries.”

According to the Dubai Department of Civil Aviation, Dubai International Airport is undergoing “an 8h closure starting 06:30, March 12, 2007”.

http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/2007/03/12/212510/pictures-biman-bangladesh-airbus-a310-accident-closes-dubai-international.html

All photos belong to Wasim Chowdhury aka planemannyc. He recently contacted me and given permission to post his photos here. Enjoy! You can see from the photos that he has got some talent.

Full view of Zia International Airport's main terminal. By the time this flight landed at 9:30 am, flights of Gulf Air (Bahrain), Gulf Traveller (Muscat), Etihad (Abu Dhabi) and Kuwait Airways (Kuwait) had left. Seen here are Qatar Airways A300, Emirates B777 two Biman F-28s and a GMG MD-82.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/dhakaairport108.jpg

The southern most part of Zia International Airport terminal building is used to park domestic / regional airliners. You can see the Domestic Terminal (the 1 storied red brick building to the right) as well as 2 Biman F-28s and a GMG MD-82.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/dhakaairport107.jpg

View looking south, considered to be Terminal 2 at Zia Airport. Here, all three types used by Biman can be seen: DC-10-30, F-28, and Airbus A310-300. Engine 2 of the DC-10 is being checked.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/dhakaairport105.jpg

Shot taken from Emirates aircraft A6-EBA. In the morning, Zia International typically sees aircraft from Kuwait Airways, Gulf Air (2 flights), Qatar, Etihad and Emirates and Saudi Arabian. By 11:00 - when this EK flight left gate 1 - however, most gates in the souoth wing are deserted.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/dhakaairport106.jpg

Foreign airlines in Dhaka

2 Gulf Air / Gulf Traveller planes may make one think this is Bahrain or Muscat, but it's actually Dhaka. GF (and Gulf Traveller) have 11 flights to Dhaka, 6 from BAH, 5 from MCT, thus on certain days, 2 aircraft show up at ZIA. The GF flight is heading to BAH, the other to MCT.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/dhakaairport103.jpg

Druk Air - One of the more exotic visitors at Zia International Airport.

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http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/dhakaairport101.jpg

Air India is using 777s to Dhaka: three flights from Delhi, three from Kolkata. Flights to Kolkata continue to London, where a large number of people of Bangladeshi origin live.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/dhakaairport100.jpg

GMG's newly acquired MD-82 can be seen in the background.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/dhakaairport104.jpg

Dragonair may introduce daily Dhaka-HK flights

Dragonair is considering the introduction of daily flights between Dhaka and Hong Kong (HK) in order to serve the increasing business ties between China and Bangladesh.

The announcement came at a press briefing held at a city hotel yesterday to inform reporters about the appointment of Global Aviation Services Ltd. as the general sales agent of the airline in Bangladesh.

It comes only a month after the Dubai-based operator Emirates also announced that it will be starting daily flights to Dhaka, and reflects the growing market for both passenger travel and cargo.

"Nowadays we have four flights a week and we are looking forward to increasing the frequency to seven days a week," said Ron Mathison, Director & General Manager Cargo at Cathay Pacific, the Hong Kong based airline that acquired Dragonair last year.

"We consider Bangladesh an important country as trade and commerce here are booming and the relationship with China, as well as Hong Kong, is increasing."

"We hope that Bangladeshi customers will get a better service with greater frequency and a competitive price," he said.

Mathison said cargo flights are increasing due to the rise in Bangladeshi exports of readymade garments, footwear and seafood products. On the other hand, imports of telecom and engineering products, and electrical goods from China and Hong Kong are also going up.

The executive said that apart from a ticketing office, a visa-processing cell will be introduced as Hong Kong had recently introduced visa requirements for Bangladeshi citizen.

Dragonair Chief Executive Officer Kenny Tang and Global Aviation Service Ltd Managing Director Mahbubul Anam attended the function.

Dragonair became a member of the Cathy Pacific Group on September 28, 2006, a move that aims to reduce minimum connection time between the two carriers for passengers traveling through Hong Kong International Airport.

Cathay Pacific Airways offers schedule passenger and cargo services to 104 destinations in 35 countries and territories with a network to Asia, North America, Australia, Europe and Africa.

Dragonair operates a fleet of 28 passenger aircraft to 30 regional destinations including 21 cities in China.

http://www.thedailystar.net/2007/03/14/d70314050471.htm

It comes only a month after the Dubai-based operator Emirates also announced that it will be starting daily flights to Dhaka, and reflects the growing market for both passenger travel and cargo.

Emirates has been flying daily flights to Dhaka for a long time. Either they have already started double daily flights or in the process of doing so.

Hong Kong just withdrew on arrival visa for Bangladeshi passport holders, which is causing quite a bit of frustration among Bangladeshi business community. In the midst of such situation having daily flight between Dhaka and Hong Kong might look odd.

I personally believe that Biman has to responsible and should compensate all passenger because this Airline is in its worst financial crisis in its history due corruption and massive mismanagement. I feel that the Caretaker should sell the entire Biman Bangladesh Airlines so it can bring joy to the Bangladeshis worldwide so we can be proud to fly in our own airline when we are going or coming to our country. Currently in my opinion I've flown on Biman twice and never want to fly in it again because of the poor quality.

^^
Compensate ALL passengers?:bash: For what? If they do that, will they be in better financial condition or worse?:cheers:

It is very obvious that Biman is in the verge of death and there are steps and plans in the making to keep it alive somehow. Well, just being alive is not good enough nowadays with so much competition. Just how to save this airline and make it profitable and attractive is a million dollar question.

Emirates has been flying daily flights to Dhaka for a long time. Either they have already started double daily flights or in the process of doing so.

Hong Kong just withdrew on arrival visa for Bangladeshi passport holders, which is causing quite a bit of frustration among Bangladeshi business community. In the midst of such situation having daily flight between Dhaka and Hong Kong might look odd.


clearsky, here's a news report that should clear some confusion.

Cathay Pacific to take steps to ease Bangladeshis' visa processing for HK

Cathay Pacific Airways Limited (CP), the Hong Kong based airline, will take initiatives for consideration of the Hong Kong authority to ease the visa processing procedure for the Bangladeshi applicants willing to go there.

"We are aware that the visa processing for Bangladeshis are taking three to four weeks," Tom Wright, CP general manager for Middle East, India, Bangladesh and Africa, told the FE.

He said, they will discuss the issue with the Hong Kong authority, and make request for opening a visa-processing centre in Dhaka.

However, Cathay Pacific and Dragonair (DA) Tuesday announced the appointment of Global Aviation Services Ltd (GAS) as the airlines' new general sales agent (GSA) for Bangladesh. GAS, under the appointment, will look after the passengers and cargo sales of both CP and DA in the country.

To mark the occasion, Cathay Pacific Group opened its first joint office in Bangladesh Wednesday, where, among others, Kenny Tang, chief executive officer of DA, Mahbubul Anam, managing director of GAS, and Ron Mathison, CP director, were present.

Commenting on the appointment Kenny Tang said, "We are pleased to appoint Global Aviation as the GSA for the group in Bangladesh. Dhaka is an important route in our network, and has great potential for the future. GAS will play an important role in building our business in the market."

Ron Mathison said, "Dhaka is developing into an important market for our cargo business. The group sees great potential in Bangladesh, and we are looking forward to work with GAS to further promote ties between Bangladesh and Hong Kong."

The GAS managing director said, "it is an immense pleasure for us to have the opportunity of representing these two great airlines in the country. We look forward to develop the market of CP and DA in Bangladesh. I'm confident that we will have a long and successful future together."

http://www.financialexpress-bd.com/index3.asp?cnd=3/15/2007&section_id=7&newsid=55487&spcl=no

Proposal to buy aircraft awaits govt nod

A Biman proposal for the purchase of four aircraft awaits approval from the government, Managing Director of the country's national flag carrier MA Momen said Wednesday.

http://www.financialexpress-bd.com/index3.asp?cnd=3/15/2007&section_id=1&newsid=55514&spcl=no

Dhaka International Airport - photo taken in 1983 before the expansion and modernisation.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/dhakaairport48.jpg

Airlines at Dhaka

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/dhakaairport52.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/dhakaairport51.jpg

Biman Bangladesh Airlines at Dhaka Airport

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/dhakaairport49.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/dhakaairport50.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/dhakaairport45.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/dhakaairport46.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/bangladesh1/dhakaairport47.jpg

Best Air, Al Aqeeq to sign Joint Venture deal

Bangladeshi aviation company Best Aviation Limited will join hands with Kuwaiti aviation company Al Aqeeq Aviation and Holdings to launch domestic and international passenger services by middle of this year.

An agreement to this effect will be signed here on Thursday, said a press release Sunday.

This is the first such initiative in the aviation sector of Bangladesh. Al Aqeeq has agreed to join with Best Air as an equity partner.

Best Aviation started its operation in 1991, pioneering as a helicopter operator in Bangladesh.

http://www.newagebd.com/busi.html

How many flights are there between Dhaka and Chittagong per day ? Both are huge connurbation area . I already checked in Biman website, about 4/day, how about other airlines like GMG ?

How many flights are there between Dhaka and Chittagong per day ? Both are huge connurbation area . I already checked in Biman website, about 4/day, how about other airlines like GMG ?

GMG website says they have different number of flights on different days of the week. I think Mondays and Tuesday they have 4 flights between Dhaka-Chittagong.

New passenger airline eyes to fly by July

A Kuwait-based company has joined Bangladesh's leading air-cargo operator to launch the country's second private passenger airline, a company official said yesterday.

Aqeeq Aviation Holding has bought a 49 percent stake in Best Aviation Ltd and the two will jointly launch a passenger airline by July this year, Best Aviation's chief executive officer M. Haideruzzman said.

"We've already got the provisional air transport operating license for the airline from Bangladesh's civil aviation authority. We will start operation by July this year," he added.

The two companies are scheduled to sign the joint venture agreement in Dhaka on Thursday.

Best Aviation owns two cargo aircraft and has leased two others. The company is the leading air-cargo operator in Bangladesh and flies to the Middle East and Europe.

Aqeeq Aviation is a subsidiary of Kuwait-based investment fund, Al-Aqeelah Finance.

Haideruzzman said the new airline would lease two Boeing 737s initially and two more later to launch passenger air services to two domestic and six international destinations.

"We have applied for permits to travel to Kolkata and Jaipur in India, Jeddah in Saudi Arabia, Bangkok, Kathmandu and Dubai. At home we will fly to Chittagong and Sylhet," he said.

"The number of air passengers travelling to and from Bangladesh has been growing at a rate of 15 percent in the last few years ... there is a huge potential for business here," Haiderruzzaman said.

The airline will be the second private passenger operator in Bangladesh.

The country's sole private airline, GMG, recently started three new international flights, just weeks after state carrier Biman cut some destinations abroad to save cash.

GMG is also in talks with Biman to take over some its international routes after the state carrier said it would cut all of its loss-making international flights including New York, Paris, Frankfurt and Yangon.

Biman reported a record loss of 120 million dollars in the year to June last year.

http://www.thedailystar.net/2007/03/21/d70321050475.htm

I sure hope Biman can turn it around. Perhaps giving some it's routes to GMG would be a benificial for both parties.

Just privatise Biman. It would become much more competitive.

^^ Agree with that wholeheartedly. That's the only way it can survive long term in this highly competitive segment. The Biman brand is a symbol of Bangladesh and I would hate to see it die out.

Biman needs to privatize 100 pct of its operations in order to streamline its business. It needs to lay off 75 pct of its staff and cut the excess amounts of bureaucracy that exists in the organization at present.

Agree, the same is applicable for Bangladesh Railway.

Dhaka International Airport

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/dhakaairport50.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/dhakaairport51.jpg

Proposal to buy aircraft awaits govt nod

A Biman proposal for the purchase of four aircraft awaits approval from the government, Managing Director of the country's national flag carrier MA Momen said Wednesday.

http://www.financialexpress-bd.com/index3.asp?cnd=3/15/2007&section_id=1&newsid=55514&spcl=no

Does anyone know the latest news to Biman's proposals to buy new aircrafts?

Have they placed any orders? I heard that Biman will now lease these aircrafts instead of buying... is this right?

Also has anyone seen any signs of operation by the few airlines starting up in Bangladesh? Namely:
Best Air & Al Aqeeq
Royal Bengal Airline (or Aviana Airways)
United Airways.

Thank you.

Does anyone know the latest news to Biman's proposals to buy new aircrafts?

Have they placed any orders? I heard that Biman will now lease these aircrafts instead of buying... is this right?

Also has anyone seen any signs of operation by the few airlines starting up in Bangladesh? Namely:
Best Air & Al Aqeeq
Royal Bengal Airline (or Aviana Airways)
United Airways.

Thank you.

no one knows anything about Biman. Biman is perhaps the worst and most corrupt government-owned entity in Bangladesh.

Just found out that Biman have put out a tender for the dry lease of 2 Airbus A310-300 & 2 Airbus A300-600 aircraft for a period of 2 years for delivery by July 2007.

http://www.cptu.gov.bd/ShowDetailTender.aspx?ADId=4568

http://www.bimanair.com/tender_notices.asp

What has happened to the B777? Seems like their going back to the A310-300, old fleets. Some people never change.

thanks for the update.

Man biman is pissing me off now. The care taker government should just privatize it before its too late. Right now its an embaracement to Bangladesh.

Biman must be the most backdated institute in Bangladesh. I think the Ministry of Agriculture is more modernized than Biman.

Etihad adds new flight to Dhaka-Abu Dhabi route

Etihad Airways, the national carrier of the United Arab Emirates, has added another flight to its Dhaka-Abu Dhabi route.

With this additional flight, the airline will now fly from Dhaka six times a week, says a press release.

"This increase to six flights demonstrates our commitment to serving the Bangladesh market and we look forward to further expansion in near future," said Jill Errington, Bangladesh country manager of the airline.

Currently, Etihad offers flights to 38 destinations in the Middle East, Europe, North America, Africa and Asia.

http://www.thedailystar.net/2007/04/01/d70401051264.htm

Emirates likely to operate from Chittagong

Dubai-based Emirates airline has said it looks to operate from Chittagong soon and awaits the government's seal of approval for the new route, riding on its success of 20 years of operations in Bangladesh.

"We're more than contemplating launching Chittagong operations," Nabil Sultan, a senior vice president of Emirates, told the FE.

In an interview in Dubai, Sultan, who oversees the Emirates' commercial operations of Asia and Indian ocean, noted that they were in talks with the Bangladesh government to ensure approval for Chittagong-Dubai route that held out promise for future growth.

"The demand has been positive and is growing. We're working on scaling up investments in Bangladesh," the Emirates executive said.

But without elaborating, Sultan said there are "some difficulties" that stand in the way of operations from the port city, as the Chittagong Shah Amanat International Airport was being managed by the Thai Airlines.

Emirates, which has been operating in Bangladesh since 1986, is flying between Dhaka and Dubai route two times a day and 14 flights a week, cashing in on Dubai's location to act as an air bridge between Asia, Europe and the United States.

According to various estimates, nearly 500,000 Bangladeshi workers, mostly blue collar ones, are living in the Gulf state.

Not only migrant workers, Emirates has also kept its eye on businessmen who travel to the United States via Dubai.

Emirates's foray into the new destinations, particularly in the United States, will offer opportunity for the Bangladeshi businessmen, the official said. "Bangladeshi businessmen travel by Dubai to New York. It'll offer flexibility to them," he added.

Since 2005, Emirates has launched routes such as Abidjan, Addis Ababa, Alexandria, Bangalore, Barcelona, Beijing, Hamburg, Seoul, Kolkata, Nagoya and Tunis and the new routes, slated for operations this year, include Newcastle, Venice, Sao Paolo and Houston, Sultan.

In reply to a question, Sultan said Emirates would explore the possibility of opening a special lounge dedicated to the passengers of Emirates at the Zia International Airport (ZIA), given the movement of people between Bangladesh and the United Arab Emirates.

"It's a strong case to open a dedicated lounge at the ZIA. We'll look at this option," Sultan said.

So far, Emirates has a fleet of 102 aircraft, serving 88 destinations in 59 countries carrying 14.5 million passengers and one million tonnes of freight.
"We add two aircrafts every month to the existing fleet," he said.

By 2010, it will have 156 aircraft serving 101 destinations, carrying an estimated 26 million passengers per year.

Despite the wobbly global aviation industry, marked by lower profit margins, Emirates continues to net "spectacular" profits, thanks in large part to the "fuel-efficient" aircraft of the airline.

Asked what was the secret of Emirates's success, Sultan noted that the fuel-efficient aircrafts having an average age of 4.5 years enabled the carrier to ride out the storm of the surging fuel prices. "That's keeping our edge over the rivals."

Also, prudent use of resources and venturing into virgin markets are the other factors that have made Emirates a shining success story in the global commercial aviation market, the company executive pointed out.

The annual turnover of the Emirates Group, the parent company, is estimated at US$ 6.6 billion and it garnered net profit amounting to $762 million.

Emirates airline rang up revenues worth $6.3 billion in 2005-06 alone, with its profit totalling $674 million in the same period.

He did not agree with the assessment that the operations of Ethihad Airways, the national airline of Abu Dhabi, could leave scopes for the potential conflict of interests, saying Emirates was well positioned to stave off competition from any other long-haul carriers.

"Emirates has grown out of open skies policy, not with the government protection. Currently, we're unable to carry the growing number of passengers. So, we're pleased to have Ethihad in the race," Sultan explained.
He said the Dubai government-owned international carrier was stepping up its efforts with Airbus to ensure delivery of A380 super jumbo aircraft next year.
Delivery of first of 43 A380 to Emirates was delayed by two years to August next year, officials said.

http://www.financialexpress-bd.com/index3.asp?cnd=4/1/2007&section_id=1&newsid=57169&spcl=no

Biman to become Public Limited Company soon (http://www.weeklyblitz.net/index.php?subaction=showfull&id=1175029344&archive=&start_from=&ucat=4&cat=4)

Biman Bangladesh Airlines, the National flag career of Bangladesh will offer shares to Stock Market soon as the government has decided to make it a public limited company by June this year, in order to make it a profitable organization. Meanwhilea high-powered committee formed to explore ways of restructuring the loss-ridden Biman Bangladesh Airlines in its report recommends reducing Biman’s manpower by 50 per cent and turning it into a public limited company.

The committee headed by the civil aviation and tourism secretary, Md Shahid Alam, is likely to submit the report to the civil aviation and tourism adviser, MA Matin, committee sources said.

The government formed the 7-member committee in late February to assess the situation of the national flag carrier and report to the adviser within 15 days suggesting how to restructure it.

‘We have already prepared the report with recommendations for restructuring Biman which will be submitted to the civil aviation and tourism adviser tomorrow,’ Shahid Alam told Weekly Blitz, declining to give any details of the its content.

However, according to a high official of the ministry, the report recommends sacking about 3,000 officials and employees of Biman through golden handshake and appointing an operator to run the airline commercially and with a competitive edge.

‘The recommendations, if approved by the council of advisers, will come into effect immediately. The authorities have already started working on possible rationalization of Biman’s manpower,’ the official said.

The committee suggests turning Biman into a public limited company by floating some shares on the market. In that case, Biman will have an independent board of directors comprising one representative from each of the seven shareholders, besides officials of the civil aviation and finance ministries, experts, and retired government officials, according to the committee’s recommendation.

Biman is heading towards incurring an estimated loss to the tune of TK 4 billion this year. It has about 5,500 officials and employees on its payroll and its fleet comprises five old DC-10, four Airbus and four F-28 aircraft.
The Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation and Chevron, a foreign oil company, have threatened on several occasions to discontinue supplying fuel oil to Biman if their outstanding bills are not paid immediately. The cash-strapped airline owes around TK. 15 billion to the BPC alone in fuel bills, although Biman claims the amount is actually about TK 1 Billion.

I guess a good start, but still a long way to go before i am convinced biman is heading in the right direction.

BTW, welcome to the forum bromora.

Etihad Airways raises frequencies to 6

Etihad Airways, the national carrier of the United Arab Emirates has announced an additional flight and will operate Dhaka to Abu Dhabi with six flights a week starting from March 25, 2007, says a press release. The addition of this flight will increase capacity for more guests and cargo.

“This increase to six flights after less than a year of operation demonstrates our commitment to serving the Bangladesh market and we look forward to further expansion in the near future,” said Jill Errington, Country Manager, Etihad Airways Bangladesh.

She added that Etihad Airways has also invested in a new state of the art office which opened on March 21, 2007 at Molly Capita Centre, Gulshan Avenue, in the city.

Currently Etihad offers flights to 38 destinations in the Middle East, Europe, North America, Africa and Asia. Etihad Airways has been voted 'World's Leading New Airline' for the third consecutive year. Also in 2006 Etihad has been voted the 'The Airline of the Year in the Middle East' by the readers of the leading travel catering industry publication ‘The Pax International Magazine.

http://www.bangladeshmonitor.net/aviation_story.php?recordID=902

Bangladesh market registers robust growth, Dragonair & Cathay Pacific keen to increase frequency to Dhaka

The horizon of hitherto regional carrier Dragonair has now become much wider following integration with Cathay Pacific in September 2006 and now strongly feels the need of more capacity for Bangladesh market. Talking exclusively to The Bangladesh Monitor, at Dhaka Sheraton Hotel following meeting with media Kenny Tang, Chief Executive Officer of Dragonair and Ron Mathison, Director and General Manager Cargo, Cathay Pacific said Bangladesh market—in both passenger and air cargo—has registered robust growth. The market is currently under served, they opined.

Describing history of Dragonair and Cathay Pacific in Bangladesh , Kenny Tang said Dragonair commenced operations in 1989 with a twice-weekly service between Hong Kong and Bangladesh . From March 1 this year we entered a new chapter of our Bangladeshi history with the appointment of Global Aviation Services Ltd as the joint GSA for Dragonair and Cathay Pacific.

The signing of joint GSA reflects a broader change in the relationship between Cathay and Dragonair, which whilst sister airlines for sometime, have only recently come together into a single entity. “We look forward to our partnership with GASL - a young, dynamic local company having extensive experience in international trade. We believe that our co operation will unfold a new and exciting chapter for the airline group in Bangladesh ”.

Though the Dragonair brand was a strong regional brand, and the Cathay Pacific brand was a dominant intercontinental brand, both lacked what the other could provide. Cathay the China network and Dragonair the international feed. In September 6 a much anticipated deal was completed with Cathay Pacific acquiring the remaining the shares of Dragonair that it did not own.

From September 2006, Dragonair become a fully owned subsidiary of Cathay Pacific, though it will continue to operate under its own distinct brand.

For Bangladeshi travellers, the integration means that they can enjoy hassle-free connecting services to over 100 beyond Hong Kong destinations.

Dragonair will continue to operate its passenger service between Hong Kong and Dhaka and will act as the lead brand within the Bangladeshi market.

Ron Mathison said Bangladesh market is one of great interest to the Cathay Pacific Group and Cathay Pacific Cargo looks forward to expanding our presence in the coming months and years.

Cathay Pacific, he said has been serving the Bangladesh community as an offline carrier for close to 25 years. With an extensive international network, Cathay Pacific has been connecting Bangladesh to over 100 cities in 35 countries via the Hong Kong aviation hub.

In recent years, we have seen a surge in demand on Cathay Pacific services to Korea , USA , Canada , Europe and the Philippines from Bangladesh . Now with the integration with Dragonair, we expect the revenues of the joint airline group to grow strongly.

He said Cathay Pacific attained a profit of HK$4,088 million, up 24 per cent compared to profit in the previous year. Group turnover again hit new highs, increasing 19.4 per cent to a record HK$60,783 million. High fuel prices, however, continued to have a significant impact on the airline in 2006.

On the cargo front, Cathay Pacific carried a record 1.199 million tons of freight in 2006. New freighter destinations had been added to our network including Beijing , Chennai, Stockholm and Toronto . Our freighter fleet size also swelled to a total of 18 with the addition of two Boeing Converted Freighter B747-400 in 2006.

Freighter fleet size of Dragonair also expanded to eight to meet the growing demand. Three more B747-400 Boeing Converted Freighters are scheduled to be added to the fleet before the end of 2008.

As far as local Bangladesh market is concerned, there is continuous strong demand for cargo imports and exports into and out of Dhaka port.

Fortunately, cargo is not hampered by any visa policy. The strong China network of Dragonair has served the local community by importing garment accessories from various parts of China and exporting commodities including perishables and leather shipment to Hong Kong and beyond.

In 2006, the airline group registered a robust growth of 52 per cent in cargo revenue out of Bangladesh compared with 2005.

The integration with Cathay Pacific provides more seamless service to our agents for confirming shipment to beyond Hong Kong destinations including Vietnam and Korea .

http://www.bangladeshmonitor.net/aviation_story.php?recordID=903

Waiting to get management of SAIA, Thai keen to expand operation to Bangladesh

Thai Airways International, the oldest foreign airline operating to Dhaka , is now keen for further expansion of services. This was disclosed by two senior Thai Foreign Ministry officials—Pisanu Chanvitan, Director General; South Asia, Middle East and African Affairs and Tharit Charungvat, Director General, Department of Information—while talking to a group of journalists, from Bangladesh at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Bangkok on March 20.

The trip was jointly organised by Royal Thai Embassy, Dhaka and Thai Airways International. The purpose was to forge closer relations between the two countries in general and in the areas of health tourism, agriculture, halal food industry and technical education.

Now operating daily flight between Bangkok and Dhaka and thrice weekly flights between Chiang Mai and Chittagong , Thai started its operation to Dhaka in 1965. It is also the only foreign carrier operating to two destinations in Bangladesh .

The Bangladeshi journalists were informed that there is need to revise the existing Air Services Agreement (ASA) to expand operation of Thai. The process of revision of ASA has started.

On the question of management and operation of Shah Amanat International Airport (SAIA) by Thai, the Foreign ministry officials said the airline would be happy to get the responsibility. They informed that it is in the final stage.

It may be recalled that the management and operation of SAIA was to be handed over to Thai in February 2006. But due to opposition of Biman Bangladesh Airlines staff and Chittagong City Mayor, the handing over was postponed several times. Bangladesh government is now reviewing the agreement, it is learnt.

The Thai Foreign Ministry officials described current relations between Thailand and Bangladesh as “very much cordial and close” and in the context of Thailand 's relations with South Asia and Muslim World, “relation with Bangladesh is considered to be special”.

Thailand , they said has the expertise in off-shore oil and gas exploration and can provide this service to Bangladesh at a much lower cost. It would be showcase of cooperation, if the two countries develop close relation in the regard.

At present, there are joint venture projects in sugar, plastic, fisheries etc between Thailand and Bangladesh . The possibility of expansion is enormous, they said and added halal food industry could be one of the important area.

About the proposed Elevated Expressway in Dhaka , it was informed that after Thai side completed the feasibility study, the then concerned Bangladesh authority cut most profitable part of the project. Under that circumstance Thai side asked for new routing and new feasibility study.

During their stay in Thailand, the Bangladeshi journalists visited, among others, The Halal Science Center, Chulalongkorn University, where extensive research on halal food and nutrition is being done; Phyathai 2 Hospital in Bangkok where health tourist from Bangladesh can get international standard treatment at 10 to 12 per cent lower cost than other hospital in Bangkok; Huai Sai Royal Development Study Centre in Petchaburi province where wonderful studies on soil conservation, organic fertilization, plant and animal lives are being carried and from where countries like Bangladesh can learn and benefit and Asian Institute of Technology which is offering post-graduate studies in Engineering and Technology, Management and Environment. At present there are 67 Bangladeshis doing post-graduate and doctoral studies.

http://www.bangladeshmonitor.net/aviation_story.php?recordID=904

I guess a good start, but still a long way to go before i am convinced biman is heading in the right direction.

BTW, welcome to the forum bromora.

Thanks Zaki!

Does anyone know the copyright status of the images on this forum? They'd certainly spice up the BD airlines/airports articles in Wikipedia. I know that Tmac's posted most of them but who is the photographer?

Welcome Bromora :)

Welcome Bromora :)

Thanks! :banana:

Biman's future doesn't look so good. All the foreign airlines are making money while Biman is on the run for its life. Govt. should stop babysitting Biman and let private airlines operate on a larger scale immediately. Otherwise, all the pieces of the pie in this filed will be eaten up by the foreign airlines while we will remain as silent spectators.

Thanks Zaki!

Does anyone know the copyright status of the images on this forum? They'd certainly spice up the BD airlines/airports articles in Wikipedia. I know that Tmac's posted most of them but who is the photographer?

You won't find that out unless you imprison Tmac and torture him :D...I have exhausted non-violent tactics and failed :D :D ...

But you can always just go ahead and upload the images to Wikipedia...I doubt anybody would mind...and if they did, you could just remove them at that time.

You won't find that out unless you imprison Tmac and torture him :D...I have exhausted non-violent tactics and failed :D :D ...

How about... :bash: Tmac :bash: :nuts:

But you can always just go ahead and upload the images to Wikipedia...I doubt anybody would mind...and if they did, you could just remove them at that time.
Wikipedia has a very strict rule on copyright. The images would be taken down pretty quickly unless the source and copyright status is confirmed.

Does anybody have any recent information on the construction of Khan Jahan Ali Airport. I already know that construction has halted for reasons unknown but does anyone know if it will restart anytime soon?

Does anybody have any recent information on the construction of Khan Jahan Ali Airport. I already know that construction has halted for reasons unknown but does anyone know if it will restart anytime soon?

where is Khan Jahan Ali Airport?

where is Khan Jahan Ali Airport?

it's located beside Mongla-Khulna Highway at Foyla area of Rampal upazilla at Bagerhat district.
(From Mongla Port, distance of Khan Jahan Ali Airport is 20 km)
hope govt 'll resume its construction work.
this airport would largly help increase investment in the Mongla EPZ and
also gear up the Mongla port activities.

http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s191/mdmasud/bd_airport_map_locations.jpg

Royal Bengal Airline confirms delivery of its aircraft and launch of its services (http://www.royalbengalairline.com/news_index)

Senior directors of Royal Bengal Airline whom have recently traveled to Bangladesh for the infrastructure setup of its domestic and regional services, have finally returned after a successful visit.

The team gained the support of senior officials from the government. Key meetings have included talks with the Advisor to the Foreign and Commonwealth Ministry and the Deputy High Commissioner of the British high commission, Dhaka.

Royal Bengal Airline managing director, Shalim Rahman said, “we are in an excellent competitive position. The market is in our hands, we can focus on delivering excellence to the Bengali community, to define our own exceptional standards and allow the RBA Team to focus upon delivering promises”. Director, Shahidul Islam further added “it is time for us, the expatriates of our motherland, to help restore the standard of our nation, to build pride in the Bangladesh tourism and travel sector and to revolutionise Bangladesh through delivering excellence”.

Members of the Royal Bengal Airline team have also just returned from Germany after final inspections of two aircraft to be used in their domestic and regional services. The delivery of its first aircraft in Bangladesh will be the 1st June 2007, with its services to be launched immediately after.
Due to advanced progress, It has been announced that private investment opportunities are coming to a close. The deadline has been officially set for the 15th May 2007.

that's good news.

What type of aircraft are they getting?

What type of aircraft are they getting?
They were planning on getting Dash 8's for the domestic routes.

Biman Bangladesh Air adopts eticketing (http://www.breakingtravelnews.com/article/20070412083308688)

Amadeus is launching electronic ticketing with Biman Bangladesh Airlines, the national carrier of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh.

The move will see greater ease and convenience for passengers booking flights on the airlines via travel agents.
“Amadeus is delighted to be the first Global Distribution System (GDS) provider selected to work in partnership with Biman Bangladesh Airlines, and assist them in their transition to a paperless ticketing system. Pressed to comply with the year end deadline set by International Air Transport Association (IATA), many airlines are racing against time to jump onto the e-ticketing bandwagon,” said Damian Hickey, Vice President Airline Business Group Asia Pacific. “Besides saving costs for the airlines, e-ticketing also offers significant opportunities to improve passenger convenience and reduce processing time which is needed in the issuance and disribution of traditional tickets.”

Essentially, e-ticketing has been rapidly gaining recognition for its ROI by many airlines across the globe. Through the elimination of paper usage, it offers greater flexibility to passengers and travel agents, especially changes are to be made to the itinerary. Furthermore, it helps remove unnecessary processing charges that is otherwise essential for traditional tickets.

“At Biman Bangladesh Airlines, we strive to provide the best for our passengers. Through e-ticketing, we are now able to eradicate needless costs incurred from traditional ticketing. Additionally, it also helps to reduce a noteworthy level of passenger stress. No longer will passengers have to fret about losing their tickets.” said Mohammad Shah Newaz, General Manager Sales of Biman Bangladesh Airlines.

Hopefully, this will alleviate the need to queue up at Biman offices for re-confimations and actually be able to re-confirm without being forced to pay bribes!

Dhaka Zia International Airport (partial view of the main terminal)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v193/Bangladesh/dhakaairport85.jpg

China Eastern plans to introduce B767s flights to Dhaka

China Eastern Yunnan Airlines has been here for about two years only but the airline has already become very popular among the Bangladeshi travellers. Starting operations with three flights, it quickly raised the frequency to five and is now serving the capital of Bangladesh daily, almost doubling its passenger numbers last year. The airline is planning to introduce bigger aircraft.

“ Bangladesh is a potential market and the airline is enjoying good load factor. Last year it was 80 per cent, in March 2007 it was 90 per cent and we expect it would be 95 per cent in April 2007,” said Li Jing, Country Manager Bangladesh, China Eastern.

“We plan to replace Boeing B737s with Boeing B767s on this route,” she said adding, “the bigger aircraft will also help us take more cargo.”

On whether the airline would bring in Chinese tourists to Bangladesh , she said, “Besides tourism destinations you need to have some products to offer to them. You need to keep people happy.”

On the possibility of freighter flights she said we can uplight more and more cargo from here but if would be hard to get space from Shanghai on words.

China Eastern hopes to market packages to China in the days ahead, she added, replying to a query.

China Airlines connects the capital of Bangladesh to over 330 destinations in China and over 80 international and regional destinations. The airline, one of the largest in China , has over 200 aircraft (with more than 100 seats) in its fleet mostly from Boeing and Airbus.

Eastern Express is the domestic airlines, Eastern Miles is the traveller reward programme of the airline, Eastern Air Holidays for business passengers, Gracious Home for travellers of delayed flights, to name a few brands and services of the airline. It has been issuing e-tickets from September 8, 2003 .

Based in Shanghai , China Eastern has hubs in Xibei , Yunnan , Shandong , Anhui , Jiangxi , Shanxi , Hebei , Ningbo and Gansu .

Holder of the “Five Star Diamond Award” presented by the American Academy of Hospitality Sciences, China Eastern was established in June 1988 and developed rapidly for 18 years. In 1997, it successfully completed its share reform and was listed in Shanghai , Hong Kong and New York stock exchanges.

The airline is the controlling shareholder of China Cargo Airlines, China Eastern Jiangsu Airlines and China Eastern Wuhan Airlines.

China Eastern's alliance future depends on new investor

As the three global alliances angle for a foothold in the Chinese market, China Eastern Airlines is leaving its options open, preferring to identify a new strategic investor before committing to one of the groupings.

The carrier told the Shanghai Securities Gazette that it is speeding up talks on selling off a 20 per cent-25 per cent stake to a new investor, likely a foreign airline that already may be an alliance member. "There is no need to rush now, as we don't want to disturb our ongoing negotiations," it told the paper. China Eastern Airline Group holds a 59.9 per cent share of the carrier with the remaining shares in circulation. It intends to maintain a controlling stake.

American Airlines has attempted to recruit CEA into oneworld and said the Chinese carrier was interested but that "there is no specific timetable on when to make it happen." Korean Air has lobbied on behalf of SkyTeam, which already has signed up China Southern Airlines. China Eastern said its contact with each of the three alliances has been "confined in internal discussion."

Singapore Airlines, a member of Star Alliance, is pegged as the most probable strategic investor in CEA. "We are negotiating with China Eastern about possible partnership to hold a stake, but I don't think that will happen in the near future," a top SIA executive reportedly told the paper. CEA Chairman Li Fenghua noted there are several foreign airlines showing interest in investing. It refused to disclose candidates other than SIA.

http://www.bangladeshmonitor.net/aviation_story.php?recordID=922

GMG Airlines sets sights on 8 more international destinations

GMG Airlines, the leading private sector airline of the country, is now flying to Kathmandu , New Delhi , Kolkata, Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok. Flights to Singapore , Hong Kong and Karachi are on the cards and the airline has set its sights on Dubai , Abu Dhabi , Kuwait , Muscat and Doha. Ismail R. Chowdhury, Director Operations, GMG Airlines was talking to The Bangladesh Monitor in his office on April 4.

In another development, the airline concluded code-share agreement with Indian (formerly Indian Airlines) and is operating 17 flights to Kolkata – 13 out of Dhaka and four out of Chittagong .

“Kolkata has been very successful. IA has stopped operating to Bangladesh and we have taken over,” he said adding, “We have access to their network. We expect to increase the flights (to Kolkata) to 21 by next month. The target is 28 flights a week.”

GMG Airlines operates three days a week to Kuala Lumpur and has applied for flying daily to the Malaysian capital. “We are hoping for approval from the Malaysian government in this regard. We are fully booked up to June and cannot offer seats,” Ismail Chowdhury added.

“The Bangkok traffic is also with us. We are experiencing 100 per cent load factor on this route, as we are offering alternatives to passengers flying from US. Now those flying with United and Northwest to Bangkok can choose us, as can passengers flying from Seoul on Korean Airlines.”

Before it is able to fly to destinations in Middle East , GMG Airlines hopes to tap Lufthansa and Emirates flights to Kolkata for its passengers flying westwards.

With the assistance of Dragonair, Ismail Chowdhury is also helping people of Kolkata fly to Hong Kong via Dhaka , a sector hitherto untapped.

The airline now has two MD82s and two Dash 8s and hopes to add the third MD82 at the end of May and also another Dash 8. The MD82s are configured in 16 seats in Business Class and 137 seats in Economy Class. He hopes to go for Rajshahi and Syedpur flights after receiving the third Dash 8.

Regarding tourism potentials of the country, Ismail Chowdhury said Indian High Commission here issues about 600,000 visas a year while only about 120,000 Indians take visas to come to Bangladesh . This picture has to change. “We need to reverse this trend and bring in more Indian tourists. Many Indians whose forefathers hail from Bangladesh want to come, as this is their ancestral place. We need to take advantage of this market."

“I believe airlines can help promote tourism in Bangladesh . As for myself I am promoting Cox's Bazar in India . We fly there every day – four directly and three via Chittagong .”

GMG plans to bring in expatriate Cabin Service Manager and a Catering Manager to train its cabin personnel as well as to raise its service standards further.

The airline hopes to switch over to e-ticketing within the next three months.

On slow release of aircraft parts, Ismail Chowdhury appealed to the government to take quick steps to release those whenever the airlines need and bring them. “Aircraft parts not commercial commodities. A whole day should not be wasted,” he said.

http://www.bangladeshmonitor.net/aviation_story.php?recordID=923

I am loving GMG's emergence as a real threat to Biman. Hopefully this will wake Biman up.

^^ GMG has an excellent service. I was impressed with them when I flew with them. I think the govt. should give them more flying rights. I think GMG needs wide bodied aircraft. Looks like the foreign airlines are reaping off the benefits of growing middle class. We need to take a bigger bite on our share.

OMAN AIR STARTS MUSCAT - CHITTAGONG FROM MAY 1st
Reported by: Bangladesh Monitor

Oman Air will start operating to Chittagong from Muscat with five flights a week from May 1. From the capital of Oman , passengers from Bangladesh will get good and convenient connections to Dubai , Bahrain , Doha , Kuwait , Abu Dhabi , Cairo , Amman and Beirut . B737-800 aircraft configured in 12 seats in Business Class and 142 seats in Economy Class will be serving Shah Amanat International Airport arriving at 0700 hours and departing at 0750 local time on all days except Saturdays and Mondays.

“We are excited to be here,” Gihan Karunaratne, Country Manager-Bangladesh , Oman Air said this while talking to The Bangladesh Monitor.

Karunaratne, who will be based in Chittagong , expects a mix of both labour and business traffic from the country's southern gateway by air. He also hopes to promote Business Class products and Oman Air Holidays packages to the business travellers to the cities the airline flies to.

“Oman Air will be serving people of Chittagong , so that they do not have to take the trouble of travelling to Dhaka . We expect 80 per cent of the passengers from Chittagong . If there is enough traffic from Dhaka , then we'll think of introducing a bus service between Chittagong and Dhaka ,” the Oman air Country Manager said.

Oman Air is a very reliable airline excelling in excellent on-time performance, he said adding “for the last three years we had 95 per cent on-time performance.”

“Our theme for this year is ‘Expect More,' that's what we would be telling Banglade-shi travellers– to expect more. We– me and my staff– would be very reachable to the people of Chitta-gong be they from labour or business-persons, we want to assure them that,” Karunaratne said.

A Sri Lankan, Karunaratne has been in the trade for 30 years. Holder of Diploma from the Chartered Institute of Marketing, he worked with Emirates airline at Muscat and Dubai before joining Oman Air.

The airline has taken an office at Agrabad Arcade in Chittagong which is likely to open on April 21.

Mucat immigration treats BD passport holders really bad. They refuse transit visa even if Airlines arrange such visa. Unless this process is changed, Muscat will not be a "convenient connection" as stated above.

Its good to hear GMG doing well. Maybe this government can finally learn the fact that they having their overly bureaucratic hold on Biman is only going to make it continue as an embaracement to Bangladesh an completely unreflective of Bangladesh's current economic situation.

Competition among businesses is always good for the consumer. But it can also benefit business, if they use it as incentive to improve themselves. Which is the effect I hope it will have on Biman.

Apart from GMG BestAir (or Bismillah air) will also launch service soon. Bangladeshi owned UK carrier is also in the pipeline. I think the govt will let private airlines gradually take over the market, that way Biman employees will be able to transfer their jobs to these airlines. Biman is heading towards virtual death without any possibility of turning back.

The caretaker government has decided to turn Biman Bangladesh Airlines into a public limited company under a re-structuring plan to turn the huge loss incurring national airlines into a profitable organisation.

The government's restructuring plan is likely to cut Biman's existing 6,838-strong manpower to half.

"The government is thinking about making the national airlines profitable by turning it into a public limited company. But the government will own hundred per cent share" said Communications and Civil Aviation Adviser MA Matin after a meeting yesterday.

A high-powered committee headed by the secretary of the civil aviation ministry, already recommended transforming the corporation into a public limited commercial company. The report of the committee was placed before a consultation meeting of the adviser with civil society members at the civil aviation ministry.

After the meeting Matin told the reporters that he would place the committee's recommendations at the advisory council meeting for final approval. "I shall recommend making Biman a limited company by June."

Admitting that the restructuring plan would cut the existing manpower into half, Matin said the government would formulate a guideline for releasing corrupt and additional manpower through golden handshake.

Debapriya Bhattacharya, executive director of the Centre for Policy Dialogue, and economist Abul Barakat, who were present at the meeting on behalf of the civil society members, blamed the corporation's incurring huge loss every year mainly to corruption and mismanagement.

Former secretary Abdul Muyeed Chowdhury, Deputy Governor of Bangladesh Bank Ziaul Hasan Siddiqui, Chairman of Securities and Exchange Commission Faruque Ahmed Siddiqui, President of FBCCI Mir Nasir Hossain, acting Secretary of the Ministry of Civil Aviation Sheikh Altaf Ali were also present at the consultation meeting.

Debapriya Bhattacharya suggested that the government undertake the re-structuring plan at least in two phases. In the first phase, the government should formulate the documents for turning the corporation into a public limited company and take preparation for inviting foreign direct investment (FDI) and strategic partners.

In the second phase, the financial balance sheet would be restructured and shares off loaded through initial public offering (IPO). The huge liabilities of the corporation amounting around Tk 700 crore could be also transferred into a block account for attracting FDI, Debapriya said.

He said "the government should also reschedule the existing routes while continuing the commercially viable routes like Middle East and Malaysia."

He told The Daily Star that "the first phase should take 3-4 months and the second phase one and a half years for implementation."

When asked about the adviser's comment that the government wanted to keep 100 per cent share at its hand even after making it a public limited company, Debapriya said, "Nothing will change if government shares are not offloaded."

Asked whether cutting the manpower would be a drastic step, Debapriya said under the restructuring plan none would be terminated and the additional manpower would be given option for retirement through a golden handshake.

"Biman incurs a loss of Tk 4,000 to 5,000 crore annually only for corruption" Prof Abul Barakat, a teacher of Economics of Dhaka University told the reporters.

"If we can stop the corruption, Biman can earn an annual profit of Tk 2,000 crore," he said.

http://www.thedailystar.net/2007/04/26/d7042601044.htm

that's great new Masud. I hope Biman can turn it around.

Bangladesh Biman set to become public limited company

Bangladesh Biman, the national carrier, is set to become a public limited company under a revamp plan aimed at reducing its huge losses and operational costs.

A golden handshake is likely to be offered to half of the airline's 6,838 employees under a plan cleared by the government Wednesday.

'The government is thinking about making the national airlines profitable by turning it into a public limited company. But the government will own 100 percent shares,' said communications and civil aviation adviser M.A. Matin.

Set up in 1972, Biman has been gasping for funds to buy new aircraft and equipment and also for its operational cost expenditure. The Khaleda Zia government had last year refused funds and asked it to raise money from the market.

Biman, which has 15 aircraft for domestic and international operations, was hit hard last year when it was restricted from flying to the US and Canada on grounds of air safety, reported The Daily Star.

A high-powered committee, headed by the secretary of the civil aviation ministry, recommended transforming the corporation into a public limited commercial company. The report of the committee was placed before a consultation meeting of the adviser with civil society members at the civil aviation ministry.

After the meeting, Matin told reporters that he would place the committee's recommendations at the advisory council meeting for final approval. 'I shall recommend making Biman a limited company by June.'

Admitting that the restructuring plan would cut the existing manpower into half, Matin said the government would formulate guidelines for releasing corrupt and extra manpower through a golden handshake.

Biman incurs a loss of 40 billion to 50 billion takas ($570 million to $720 million) annually only due to corruption, said Abul Barakat, an economics teacher at Dhaka University and a member of the committee.

'If we can stop the corruption, Biman can earn an annual profit of 20 billion takas ($290 million),' he said.

Another committee member, Debapriya Bhattacharya, who is also the executive director of the Centre for Policy Dialogue, suggested that the government undertake the restructuring plan in two phases.

In the first phase, the government should formulate documents for turning the corporation into a public limited company and prepare to invite foreign direct investment (FDI) and strategic partners, he said.

http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/56018.html

Turning Biman around is a huge task. There is so much corruption in that organization. We (my family) stopped travelling by Biman a long time back. There were times when we saw people being turned away saying the flight was full (i.e. if you bribe the official and you'd get a seat, otherwise the flight is full) and after getting on the plane we saw half the seats were empty. Imagine how much money the airline lost in that way. These are officials at stations abroad that I'm talking about. If people like that are working for the company there is little chance of turning the organization around. Let's hope they can stop officials from doing these kind of things.

There is so much money to be made. With all the Bangladeshis living abroad or going abroad along with the people visiting the country for business, etc, it is a HUGE market. Every time I see that Emirates or Etihad or Qatar Airways or any other airline increasing their frequencies from our airports, I kinda feel bad because it's another opportunity lost for a local airline.

gohorns, read the article below. It talks about Biman cutting jobs. I am sure a lot of those corrupt officials will be gone.

Bangladesh national carrier to cut 4,000 jobs

Bangladesh’s government will cut 4,000 jobs within months as part of an emergency rescue plan for the country’s ailing national carrier which includes making it a public company, officials said Wednesday.

The cuts had been proposed by Bangladesh Biman Airlines and approved by the government, chief executive officer MA Momen told AFP. Momen said hefty job cuts alone could not rescue the airline, which needs new planes and a new operating basis.

“By only cutting jobs, we cannot be profitable. It will only reduce some losses. To make Biman profitable, it needs to have a brand new fleet of aircraft and to cut all the (money) that it gives to the government,” he said. Under the plan, Biman would also be made a public company by June 30, interim civil aviation minister MA Matin said after a Biman board meeting on Wednesday. Momen said many of the company’s problems would be solved automatically if Biman were publicly owned, allowing it to make its own decisions. Asked whether this meant the airline would eventually be floated on the bourse, a Biman spokesman said: “It will become a public limited company but whether it is going to be listed on the stock market or sold to private interests has not been decided yet.” The rescue plan comes after Biman incurred losses of over 120 million dollars in the year to June 2006 due to higher fuel and maintenance costs.

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2007%5C04%5C26%5Cstory_26-4-2007_pg4_18

Hi all,

I am new in this forum. I have read previous entries and I really like the discussion. I have general interest in the aviation industry and I look for information about Bangladesh's progress in this field. So, this would be a great forum for me.

Hope to contribute soon.

welcome shatilislam. Looking forward to more of your posts.

Nice to have you on board Shatil. Will keep an eye out for those aforementioned contributions!

Does this basically mean that the gov will only hand over the company to a paid management team while retaining 100% ownership?

I surely do hope that this time round they are successful!

^^ I'm not all that familiar with Bangladeshi legal terms but I am guessing a public limited company would be similar in structure to a public corporation. If that is the case, the government would, through an investment bank or maybe even itself, float an IPO (Initial Public Offering) and invite investors to buy Biman's stock. Most likely these shares will be traded in the DSE. Once that's sorted out, the stockholders of the company will be able to elect their representatives to the board of directors, thus effectively having a voice in the affairs of the company. If it truly becomes a public company, the government should ideally not retain any of the ownership, at least in the long run.

I think Biman has left it too late.

There are now many companies who are starting up in Bangladesh, namely Royal Bengal Airline (http://www.royalbengalairline.com), who have announced in a press conference in London that they will receive delivery of their first domestic and regional aircraft on 1st June 2007 and will start operations soon after.

Also to mention the increase in frequencies by other airlines. Also GMG have increased their routes.

I think this will be Bimans last chance for reform. I think Biman's monopoly has been broken and I don't belive that they can ever get that back.

The Bangladesh aviation will become so competitive that I personally belive it will be the next India. where there are many airline companies.

All of this is happening because of Biman's own faults. If their service was good I don't think these new start-ups would start.

What's your view on this?

wow that's a beautiful website. Royal Bengal Airlines should be a good one.

I think Biman's problem was poor strategies and corruption. Why don't they hire people that know how to run a business? Aviation sector is back again since 9/11. Some airlines are making so much $$ while Biman is still losing? If Biman becomes a private entity then they may turn it around.

I'm speechless!!!!!! When I first heard the name "Royal Bengal Airline" I rolled my eyes...because I didn't think it was a very catchy name but this website has completely won me over. If this is anything to go by (and it may not be..for all we know), this is going to be an awesome airline. Let's hope we can see a real 777 in those colors one day, and not just in the commercials. :)

Wow...excellent use of cricket clips, music, and colors...and the tiger....overall they used a lot of things that bring out the passion in Bangladeshis.

now what about this one ...

http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s191/mdmasud/airsylhet.jpg

http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s191/mdmasud/1.jpg

http://www.airsylhet.com/

Well...best of luck to this one too...but come on...I'm not from Sylhet..lol..I'm obviously going to have more pride in an airline that at least sounds like it represents the entire nation :)

Well...AirSylhet say they'll launch in "Summer 2007" but have no planes or pilots or even licenses. Make of that whay you will :)

For all those international people who don't know: Air Sylhet is another idea on paper at the moment, they are also based in the UK.
They came after Royal Bengal Airline and are currently advertising "heavily" on Bangla TV (UK). They are selling shares in the company with a minimum investment of £1000 per person.

They have no license, no planes, no crew and no permission from CAA of CAAB and yet they are still advertising launch in Summer 2007. I really don't know what that is all about!

For the average person in the UK, Royal Bengal Airline do look more professional and won us over a long time ago.

Royal Bengal Airline have already set up much of the infrastructure in the UK and abroad. From what I understand they have dedicated teams here in the UK and in Bangladesh. They have the license ready and are expecting to start their Bangladesh domestic service in June 2007 when their first plane is delivered, and are also expected further deliveries of aircraft after June 2007.

The difference between these two companies, viewed from the majority of the people, is that Royal Bengal Airline look and sound more professional. Their advertising is very minimal and are looking for investors but don't look desperate. They are selling a single stake (not shares - not sure what the difference is though) for £12,500. They have a deadline set for May 15th at 5pm when the door for new investment will close.

From a live appearance on the UK's top Bangla channel, Channel S, they have promised people top customer service and an open door policy where anyone can visit, call or e-mail them with any complaints or suggestions and demand it to be rectified.

They have a milestone video (http://www.royalbengalairline.com/milestonesVideo) which shows what they have done since 30 May 2006, when they initially started working on this project.

What is amazing is that it hasn't been even a year yet and they have achieved so much.

Biman is reducing their domestic operations. So that market is up for grab. Although with improved road condition there are stiff competition from the bus services. The real bread and butter lies in the international route where the foreign airlines are doing so well. GMG's international flights are booked for the next two three months and they are trying to increase frequency.

(currently biman may not fly to some of these destinations)

at new york
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s191/mdmasud/biman_newyork.jpg

at montreal
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s191/mdmasud/biman_montreal.jpg

at manchester
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s191/mdmasud/biman_manchester.jpg

at hongkong
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s191/mdmasud/biman_hongkong.jpg

at frankfurt
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s191/mdmasud/biman_frankfurt.jpg

at brussels
http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s191/mdmasud/biman_brussels.jpg

nice pics Masud!

Oman Air Line launches Chittagong flight today

The Oman Air Line will launch its flight on Chittagong-Muscat-Chittagong route on May 1 (Tuesday) for the convenience of the passengers of the greater Chittagong region. The authority has fixed fare for the air trip between Chittagong and Muscat at US$ 230 US, sources said.—It will operate five flights a week excepting Saturday and Monday from Chittagong Shah Amanat International Airport.

http://www.financialexpress-bd.com/index3.asp?cnd=5/1/2007&section_id=1&newsid=59938&spcl=no

Interesting pics Masud. I didn't know Biman used to fly to Montreal and Manchester. thanks!!

Biman flies to Manchester. Biman flight was diverted to Montreal last year when NewYork refused to allow Biman to land in JFK. I think these photos are taken from airliners.net .

Although Biman is banned from landing at JFK I've seen their office in the terminal reopen. I hope this is a sign that maybe the ban will be lifted.

Oman Air links Chittgong with Muscat

Oman Air launched flight services on the Chittagong-Muscat route setting up air link between Bangladesh and Oman, officials said.

A Boeing-737 aircraft of Oman Air carrying 117 passengers from Muscat landed at Shah Amanat International Airport in Chittagong at 7:45am on Tuesday and departed after one hour with 104 passengers marking launch of the new flight services, officials added.

Chairman of Oman Air Bin Hamdoon Harthy at a press briefing in the city on Tuesday said the flight service was introduced on the Chittagong-Muscat route as a reflection of a long-time good relation between Oman and Bangladesh.

‘We want to promote business and tourism between the two countries by launching such a direct flight service’ he added.

He informed that Oman Air was operating with a fleet of 12 aircrafts and nine more carriers likely to join the fleet shortly.

Oman Air pressed Boeing-737 on the new route to operate five days each week except Saturday and Monday, he further said.

http://www.newagebd.com/busi.html

^^ Muscat to Chittagong ?? That's really strange since Oman Air only operates B737 so it sounds impossible for such a small aircraft to fly such long distance.

^^ Actually Skyprince...it's not a very long distance...Oman is on the edge of the Arabian Peninsula...pretty close to the subcontinent..

^^ Muscat to Chittagong ?? That's really strange since Oman Air only operates B737 so it sounds impossible for such a small aircraft to fly such long distance.

Muscat and Chittagong is not that far apart from each other. Here is the actual flight distance between the two airports:

Route between (MUSCAT, INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, OMAN) and (CHITTAGONG, CHITTAGONG, BANGLADESH):

Distance along great circle: 2129.6 statute miles, 1850.6 nautical miles, 3427.2 kilometers

Initial true great circle heading: 85.7 degrees (east).

Here is the range information of the B737-700 they are using for this route:

737-700 - Range with 126 pax 2852km (1540nm) or 6037km (3260nm) for HGW version.

So, as you can see, Chittagong is well within the range of B737-700 from Muscat. :)

Wow, I always thought the distance is around 4500 to 5000 kms :D

Hello everyone, Does anyone know how much a used Canadian dash-8 actually cost. Well i'll tell you its approx. £ 750,000 and anything up to £ 1.5 Million.So how can Royal Bengal Airlines confirm to the general public that they have bought an aircraft for £7 Million pounds and then they post the pictures on their website and national press, while the aircraft is actually the dash series. It does not make sense. Any Questions?

I think this question should better be asked to the Royal Bengal Airlines. I don't know what types of aircrafts they have purchased. Right now they are just a paper airlines so give them some time to actually start the service.

Really ... I even went to their site to read that claim that they have allegedly made. I haven't found it. Where exactly is it? and how will it affect my journey - lets say - from London to Dhaka?

Hello everyone, Does anyone know how much a used Canadian dash-8 actually cost. Well i'll tell you its approx. £ 750,000 and anything up to £ 1.5 Million.So how can Royal Bengal Airlines confirm to the general public that they have bought an aircraft for £7 Million pounds and then they post the pictures on their website and national press, while the aircraft is actually the dash series. It does not make sense. Any Questions?

yes the question is why do you hate Royal Bengal Airlines? Do you work for Air Sylhet?

What about Britbang? Why do you hate Air Sylhet? Do you work for Royal Bengal Airlines?

This thread is not here to spread propaganda and fight each other about their airlines. No one here cares.

My point is everything should be transparent and the people have the right to know and NO i dont hate anyone, obviously may the best team win.As in the long we benefit from it.

yes the question is why do you hate Royal Bengal Airlines? Do you work for Air Sylhet?

What about Britbang? Why do you hate Air Sylhet? Do you work for Royal Bengal Airlines?

This thread is not here to spread propaganda and fight each other about their airlines. No one here cares.

Tmac don't bother getting me invloved in your accusations! Neither do I work for Royal Bengal Airline or Air Sylhet. I am just an average Bengali person in the UK who is currently affected by these companies in our everyday life.

I speak my mind, this doesn't mean that I am one sided. Whatever I write is the way it is portrayed to me! This means that if tomorrow another company is portrayed to me better than the previous I will write something which may look biased or propaganda in SOME people's eyes but in reality it is infact my opinion!!!

Remember threads like this are meant for DISCUSSIONS!!! If sometimes opinions' are not involved it would become FACT and NEWS.

The comments I posted in this thread are relevant to the Bangladesh Aviation. Therefore if you don't like it don't engage in the discussions and stop accusing people.

yes the question is why do you hate Royal Bengal Airlines? Do you work for Air Sylhet?

What about Britbang? Why do you hate Air Sylhet? Do you work for Royal Bengal Airlines?

This thread is not here to spread propaganda and fight each other about their airlines. No one here cares.

Tmac, dude, it's OKAY to ask questions. I don't think he "hates" Royal Bengal Airline, he's just questioning a claim made by them. I think we should practice some skepticism and not believe everything we're told. Wow...you having a bad day? :lol:

Tmac don't bother getting me invloved in your accusations! Neither do I work for Royal Bengal Airline or Air Sylhet. I am just an average Bengali person in the UK who is currently affected by these companies in our everyday life.

I speak my mind, this doesn't mean that I am one sided. Whatever I write is the way it is portrayed to me! This means that if tomorrow another company is portrayed to me better than the previous I will write something which may look biased or propaganda in SOME people's eyes but in reality it is infact my opinion!!!

Remember threads like this are meant for DISCUSSIONS!!! If sometimes opinions' are not involved it would become FACT and NEWS.

The comments I posted in this thread are relevant to the Bangladesh Aviation. Therefore if you don't like it don't engage in the discussions and stop accusing people.


Don't take it personally man...anyway we appreciate you prividing us with the information you did. All too often we just get propaganda from the companies themselves and don't get the real stories because no one bothers to check the facts so some digging is always appreciated. Thanks!

Hello everyone, Does anyone know how much a used Canadian dash-8 actually cost. Well i'll tell you its approx. £ 750,000 and anything up to £ 1.5 Million.So how can Royal Bengal Airlines confirm to the general public that they have bought an aircraft for £7 Million pounds and then they post the pictures on their website and national press, while the aircraft is actually the dash series. It does not make sense. Any Questions?
Where is it stated that they bought the plane for £7m?

bromora why don't we just rest Royal Bengal Airlines and Air Sylhet?

If you say something I guarantee that you will be next in line to be accused of spreading propaganda and be labelled as a memeber of a certain group/company.

Lets just rest this case and continue with other Bangladesh Aviation.

Moving on....

Does anyone know when Biman will implement their new policies? Or does anyone know if they already have?

I heard that they started their golden hand-shakes with some employees of Biman. Is this the right step forward??

^^ personally, i would prefer to see only a select group of individuals offered golden-handshakes. most of the biman employees are corrupt individuals who are partly (if not completely) to blame for biman's lackluster life. i would like to see some justice being served to the corrupt individuals..but since that may not happen..the least I would hope for is that they aren't granted handsome pay-offs for retiring early.

^^ personally, i would prefer to see only a select group of individuals offered golden-handshakes. most of the biman employees are corrupt individuals who are partly (if not completely) to blame for biman's lackluster life. i would like to see some justice being served to the corrupt individuals..but since that may not happen..the least I would hope for is that they aren't granted handsome pay-offs for retiring early.

Very good point gohorns. If we recall the story Biman cleaners who got millions involving with smuggling ring - some of these people does not deserve a dime.

bromora its on their website watch the footage when they announce the delivery date of 1st June 2007.

I think that the main corruption was with the governement. For example I heard that Khaleda's son Tareq squeezed a lot of money from Biman by apparently ordering parts and paying more than what it is worth. I believe that if they had really bought parts Biman's DC-10's would not be in its current state!

I personally believe that because the top has been shaken the people below would be very scared to do anything like this again.

The individuals who were doing this were maybe given the order by the top officials. This is why no actions have been taken by their number ones!

gohorns I think that without paying some money Biman can't go forward. At least by paying money and getting rid of these corrupt people is better in the long run. Otherwise these people would still be employed and they might always look for opportunities to pocket some wealth in discreet without being detected - remember these are pros now!

bromora why don't we just rest Royal Bengal Airlines and Air Sylhet?

If you say something I guarantee that you will be next in line to be accused of spreading propaganda and be labelled as a memeber of a certain group/company.
I have no affiliation with any of these companies and do wish them all the best. As a consumer, it can only benefit me personally the more there are. We don't want an RBA monopoly anymore than we want a Biman monopoly.

However, I am genuinely interested in understanding the anomalies. The press did mention the £7m figure but I couldn't find it in the press release.

As, you say, moving on...

Biman (the airline) has got a huge mountain to climb in order to be a competitive force in the BD airline industry. I also agree that privatising the ground handling (as proposed by the caretaker government) is the right way to go.

I think that the main corruption was with the governement. For example I heard that Khaleda's son Tareq squeezed a lot of money from Biman by apparently ordering parts and paying more than what it is worth. I believe that if they had really bought parts Biman's DC-10's would not be in its current state!

I personally believe that because the top has been shaken the people below would be very scared to do anything like this again.

The individuals who were doing this were maybe given the order by the top officials. This is why no actions have been taken by their number ones!

gohorns I think that without paying some money Biman can't go forward. At least by paying money and getting rid of these corrupt people is better in the long run. Otherwise these people would still be employed and they might always look for opportunities to pocket some wealth in discreet without being detected - remember these are pros now!


As much as that idea bothers me, I have to concede that you're probably right. Maybe that is the only way to get rid of these individuals and move forward. But you do realize this sets a bad precedent and future employees may come to believe that they can be corrupt and in the end get away with it all and not only that, they'll get good retirement money. Is there way to stop this happening in the future if we don't make examples of some of the corrupt officials in place now?

From BBC today:

Biman announces huge job losses

Bangladesh's state-owned airline, Biman, has announced plans to slash its workforce by June as part of a privatisation initiative to cut losses.
A senior Biman official told the BBC on Wednesday that more than 1,400 jobs would eventually be lost.

In April the interim government decided to turn Biman into a public limited company by the middle of 2007.

The airline is now so cash-strapped it is struggling to pay salaries and maintain its elderly fleet of aircraft.

Bloated staff

"We are seeking 3bn taka [$43m] from the government to pay off the to-be-retrenched staff ," Biman's Managing Director, MA Momen, told the Reuters news agency.

The authorities have not revealed when shares will be floated on the country's two stock exchanges in Dhaka and Chittagong.

But officials say that initially the government will retain a 100% stake, appointing an operator to run the airline for some time.

Correspondents say that Biman's erratic passenger schedule, the poor state of its 13 elderly aircraft, its bloated staff numbers and its failure to pay fuel bills have all given the impression that it has hit severe turbulence.

It owes 12bn taka ($173.91m) to state-owned fuel supplier Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC).

A shortage of aircraft forced it to stop flights to New York, Paris, Tokyo, Frankfurt, Brussels, Rangoon and Mumbai in 2006.

In recent years Biman has been beset by corruption allegations, especially over aircraft-leasing, with government-appointed middlemen usually named as the beneficiaries.

The airline's woes have been pinned by many observers on the reluctance of successive governments to relinquish control of Biman and allow it to stand on its own feet.

One report estimated that Biman pays every passenger it transports an average of $20 in compensation for delays.

* * *

BELEAGURED BIMAN
* Officials say it will incur huge losses in the next financial year

* At least five of its 13 aircraft are out of action

* It owes millions of dollars to Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation

* It faces spiralling costs in aircraft maintenance and fuel prices

* A DC-10 and a Fokker F-28 were written off in recent accidents

Govt plans direct air link with Myanmar
Bid to boost exports

The government plans to introduce direct flight services with Myanmar to increase exports especially of pharmaceutical products to the southeastern Asian neighbour.

The commerce ministry will prepare a position paper soon to this effect and forward it to the council of advisers for approval.

The ministry will also make proposals for resuming border trade with Myanmar to facilitate trade.

A meeting with the related ministries, which include civil aviation and shipping, will be convened soon to discuss the issue, sources said

Myanmar is the country's third largest export destination for pharmaceutical products, ministry sources said.

Bangladesh exported pharmaceutical products worth $1.7 million in 2005-06 against $1.4 million in 2004-05 to Myanmar.

Bangladesh is currently exporting pharmaceutical products to 63 countries.

Bangladesh's ambassador in Yangon recently wrote to the government to consider introducing direct flight services and resuming border trade with Myanmar.

A recent visit of Foreign Adviser Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury to Myanmar also focused on expanding trade between the two countries. During the visit, the two countries also discussed introduction of direct flight services and resumption of border trade.

During the visit, issues relating to foreign currency crisis and lack of banking facilities in Myanmar were also discussed. The problems hinder trade between the two countries.

The potential of trade between the two neighbours could not be utilised fully due to lack of direct flight services and stoppage of border trade operations, an exporter said.

http://www.thedailystar.net/2007/05/12/d70512050156.htm

Runway expansion at Osmani Airport nearing completion

Sylhet Osmani Airport will be ready to handle wide-bodied aircraft by June this year, as expansion of the runway
at the airport is nearing completion.
This was stated by the foreign affairs adviser, Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury, while talking to the journalists after inspecting the progress of modernisation work at the airport.
The adviser said with the modernisation of the airport, both the expatriate people of Sylhet and the local people would be immensely.
‘From next Hajj season, the Hajj pilgrims of Sylhet will be able to fly directly to Saudi Arabia,’ he added.
The adviser was informed during the visit that 98 per cent work of the runway has already been completed.
The runway has expanded by 50 feet — 25 feet on both sides — to facilitate landing and take-off of wide-bodied
aircraft.

http://www.newagebd.com/front.html#26

that's great news about Sylhet airport.

I believe that is a great step forward. Remember Osmani Airport (ZYL) is afterall supposed to be an international airport.

Does anyone know how many runways ZYL and DAC have? How many arriving and departing flights can the authority safely handle in one hour?

The last time I was at Osmani Airport everything was distgusting! The toilets were horrible and probably hadn't been cleaned since it was fitted and there is hardly any duty free shops. I hope that fixing these are also on the list of "moderisation".

DAC is another airport that needs "modernisation". I believe if DAC was western standards many airlines would have considered making it a hub.

ZYL/DAC each have a single runway.

The terminal building at ZYL is part of this modernisation works and theoretically once it's all completed there should be a 1st floor with Jetways so passengers can disembark the aircraft straight into the terminal.

Check out Sylhet Airport on Wikipedia for further details (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osmani_International_Airport)

GMG to increase KL-Dhaka flights

GMG Airlines, a private-owned airline from Bangladesh, will increase the frequency of its flights between Kuala Lumpur and Dhaka from the current thrice per week to five times per week from tomorrow.

In a statement issued recently, GMG Airlines director of international operations (commercial) Virendra Nautiyal said the increase in frequencies was partly due to the increase in travel among passengers from Malaysia to Bangladesh and Nepal.

The airline is currently using MD-82 with a seating capacity of 153 on the Kuala Lumpur-Dhaka- Kathmandu sector.

http://www.btimes.com.my/Current_News/BT/Monday/Corporate/BT620977.txt/Article/