The national flag carrier Biman Bangladesh Airlines is set to sign an aircraft purchase agreement with US aircraft manufacturer Boeing. The signing ceremony is scheduled to take place on Thursday, 30 April, at 7:30 pm at Hotel InterContinental in Dhaka.
Under the proposed agreement, a total of 14 new aircraft will be acquired at an estimated cost of approximately $3.7 billion (Tk 37,000 crore). The fleet will include eight Boeing 787-10 Dreamliners, two Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners, and four Boeing 737-8 MAX jets. The wide-body Dreamliner aircraft will be deployed to expand services on long-haul routes to Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. Meanwhile, the Boeing 737 MAX aircraft will be operated on regional and short-haul routes.
According to sources at Biman Bangladesh Airlines, the agreement will be signed on behalf of the airline by Managing Director and CEO Kaizar Sohel Ahmed, while a representative of Boeing will sign on behalf of the company. The event will be attended by senior government officials, diplomats, and stakeholders from the aviation sector.
Sources further confirmed that Foreign Minister Khalilur Rahman, Minister for Civil Aviation and Tourism Ms Afrozah Khanam, State Minister M Rashiduzzaman Millat, and US Ambassador to Bangladesh Brent Christensen will be present at the signing ceremony.
Meanwhile, due to adverse weather conditions, an international cargo flight was diverted and landed at Shah Amanat International Airport in Chattogram on Tuesday, 29 April. Additionally, one domestic flight was diverted to Cox’s Bazar, and another flight was cancelled.
Airport sources said that Sichuan Airlines’ Chengdu–Dhaka cargo flight CSC-9851 landed at Shah Amanat International Airport in Chattogram at 10:55 am due to inclement weather. The flight later departed Chattogram for Dhaka at 6:45 pm.
Similarly, US-Bangla Airlines’ Dhaka–Chattogram flight BS-101 was unable to land in Chattogram due to adverse weather and was diverted to Cox’s Bazar. It eventually landed at Chattogram Airport at 6:55 pm. Additionally, Biman Bangladesh Airlines’ Dhaka–Chattogram–Dhaka route flight BG-615/616 was cancelled.
Regarding the situation, Engineer Mohammad Ibrahim Khalil, an official from the public relations department of Shah Amanat International Airport, said that continuous rainfall and adverse weather conditions caused disruptions for air passengers in Chattogram on Wednesday. Flight operations are being conducted considering the prevailing weather conditions.
DBTech/NA/MUM/OR
