Dhaka airport's 3rd terminal to open partially in Oct as construction progresses 77%

The under-construction third terminal at the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport is expected to open partially in October as its construction has so far progressed 77%, Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) Chairman Air Vice Marshal M Mafidur Rahman said on Tuesday.

"A soft launch of the third terminal is anticipated in October, marking the partial commencement of operations. Only airlines will be able to avail of its services then. The terminal is expected to be open to passengers at the end of the next year," he said during a visit to the construction site.

As per the initial plan, the terminal, being constructed at a cost of Tk21,300 crore since December 2019,  is supposed to be open to the public by April 2024.

The CAAB chairman said the construction has so far progressed by 77%. "It's been going on in a planned way. We expect 90% of construction work to be completed by October this year."

The terminal building is now widely visible. The works for interior decoration and the installation of various equipment are going on.

Explaining delays and increased costs, the chairman said the first phase of the works would be finished on time and within the original budget. However, additional features will be incorporated, necessitating extra expenses in the next phases, he added, noting that the devaluation of the taka and global economic turmoil are also the reasons.

Over a dozen boarding bridges and a proposed VVIP terminal are new inclusions, he added.

On hiring a third party for ground handling, Air Vice Marshal M Mafidur Rahman said they would finalise the deal with any suitable Japanese firm in the middle of next week.

"The signing of the agreement is expected by mid-next year, following which the third party will assume the responsibility. Until then, the CAAB will continue to look after these tasks [at the third terminal]," he said in reply to a question from reporters.

Reiterating that many international airports around the world have multiple ground handlers, he said Biman Bangladesh Airlines, which is responsible for ground handling at Dhaka and other airports, lacks the necessary workforce and equipment.

"They will be unable to provide services in the third terminal," he said.

Biman Bangladesh Managing Director and CEO Shafiul Azim earlier defended its ground handling capacity, saying that they have all the capacity to do ground handling with world-class equipment.

According to Biman officials, the state-owned company earns about Tk1,500 crore annually from ground handling services, although there are a lot of complaints about their service quality.

Upon completion of the third terminal, Dhaka airport's annual passenger and cargo handling capacity are expected to be doubled. It can accommodate approximately 16 million passengers and handle 500,000 tonnes of cargo each year.