Airbus eyes to enter Bangladesh market

Eyeing to extend its business to Bangladesh, Airbus, a European multinational aircraft manufacturer, organised an exhibition of its aircraft at the Hazrat Shahjalal International airport on Sunday.

At the event, the company showcased its new generation Airbus A350, to media personnel and top government officials.

The aircraft, powered by Rolls-Royce Trent XWB 97K engine, meets the latest CO2 emissions standard, adopted by the International Civil Aviation Organisation, which will come into effect after 2027, said Airbus officials.

At a press conference organised after the exhibition at the VVIP terminal of the Dhaka airport, Airbus India & South Asia President Rémi Maillard said, "Bangladesh is one of the fastest-growing aviation markets in the world. The passenger fleet and cargo traffic from/to Bangladesh is expected to grow three times more by 2040."

"Airbus wants to be a reliable ally of Bangladesh for achieving its Vision 2041 target. A350 can create a stable relationship between Airbus and Bangladesh," he added.

Airbus designs, manufactures and sells civil and military aerospace products worldwide and manufactures aircraft in Europe and various countries outside Europe.

As a global company with over 130,000 employees around the world, Airbus has business operations in Europe, the Americas, Africa and Asia.

Though currently, some foreign airlines including Singapore Airlines use Airbus for their commercial operations in Bangladesh, no local airlines have this company's aircraft, according to top officials of Airbus.

Meanwhile, a high-level team of the Bangladesh government including the Post and Telecommunications Minister Mustafa Jabbar, State Minister for Civil Aviation and Tourism Mahbub Ali, Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh Chairman Air Vice Marshal M Mafidur Rahman, and Biman Bangladesh Airlines Managing Director Abu Saleh Mostafa Kamal attended the exhibition and flew in the sky on the A350F aircraft. 

"We have enjoyed the flight on the aircraft. However, I cannot make any comment on whether Biman will buy aircraft from Airbus or not. Because it is a policy decision to be made by the Biman board," Biman MD Abu Saleh told TBS over the phone.

Asked if Airbus had offered to sell its aircraft to Biman, he said, "They have not offered directly yet. But, assumably, the purpose of showing us their product is to sell it."

Keeping pace with time, new generation aircraft should be added to the Biman fleet, the Biman MD observed.

Md Kamrul Islam, general manager (Public Relation), of US-Bangla Airlines told TBS, "We have a plan to operate flights in Middle Eastern routes through aircraft from Airbus. If we can come to terms, we will work with Airbus shortly."