Parliamentary committee asks whether feasibility was checked before deal to buy 35 aircraft

Biman Bangladesh Airlines has signed deals to buy a total of 35 aircraft from Boeing and Airbus. On Sunday, a member of the parliamentary committee asked whether a feasibility study had been carried out and procurement rules followed before those deals were signed.

The question was raised on Sunday at a meeting of the parliamentary committee on the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism.

Biman Bangladesh Airlines currently has 19 aircraft in its fleet. Of them, 14 are Boeing and 5 are Dash-8.

This year, in two phases, Biman signed deals to buy a total of 25 aircraft from US manufacturer Boeing. It has also signed a deal to buy 10 aircraft from European manufacturer Airbus.

The matter was raised at the committee meeting by committee member and Jamaat-e-Islami MP Kamrul Hasan. He said he wanted to know whether feasibility had been checked before the purchase deals, whether so many aircraft are needed or whether there is demand from that many passengers, and whether procurement rules are being followed.

In response, the aviation minister said no aircraft is being bought right now. They will arrive in 5 to 10 years. Bookings have been placed now. The money for the aircraft will not be spent from revenue; it will come from Biman's operations, the meeting was told.

Relevant sources said the ministry told the meeting that there are several phases to implementing the plan to buy 35 aircraft. It may take until 2040 for all the aircraft to arrive in the country.

There is a plan to pay the purchase cost through a ‘soft loan’. The meeting was told it will be possible to meet the cost from the income earned by operating the aircraft.

At the meeting, some members also raised questions about the cost of constructing the third terminal of Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport. Some members demanded an investigation committee to examine past cost increases in Biman's purchases and the third terminal's construction. However, no such investigation committee has been formed so far.

The trolley crisis at the airport was also discussed. The ministry said the trolley problem will be permanently solved once the third terminal opens.

Kamrul Hasan said Biman's mismanagement and corruption were also discussed at the meeting and a proposal was made to form an investigation committee on the matter. He also asked how much the cost had risen because the third terminal work was not finished on time. The ministry said a report on these matters will be given at the next meeting.

In a press release after the meeting, the Parliament Secretariat said the committee recommended that the ministry report on the progress of implementation of various civil aviation activities and purchases over the past eight months. The meeting was told that if any deal is signed with a foreign party, the country's interest will be given the highest priority.

The committee proposed forming a five-member sub-committee to oversee purchases, transfers, appointments and overall airport management in civil aviation, Biman and tourism.

The meeting was held at the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban chaired by committee chairman Abul Kalam Azad Siddiqui. Civil Aviation and Tourism Minister M Rashiduzzaman Millat, Altaf Hossain Chowdhury, Lutfullahil Majed, Syed Jahangir Alam, Jasim Uddin Ahmed, Suraiya Jerin, Shawkat Ara Akter, Md Kamrul Hasan and Md Abu Talib took part. The prime minister's special assistant Gias Uddin attended by special invitation.