Bangladesh today extended ongoing ban on flight operation till April 14 to and from all European countries and the nations that restricted the entry of Bangladeshis to their territories earlier as well as on all domestic routes over the coronavirus fear.
“The existing flight suspension period both in international and domestic routes has been extended till April 14,” Senior Secretary of Civil Aviation and Tourism Md Mohibul Haque told BSS today.
He cleared that this extension of banning will be applicable only for the earlier suspended routes. “The flight operation on currently operative routes as well as the special and scheduled cargo flight operation will remain continue,” Haque added.
Currently, flights are being operated from Bangladesh to only China.
Though there is no flight restriction between Bangladesh and the UK, Biman Bangladesh airlines, the loan carrier that operates flight to the UK from Dhaka, suspended its London and Manchester flights from April 1.
Biman Managing Director and CEO Mokabbir Hossain said the national flag carrier has also decided to suspend its flight operations on all 17 international routes as well as on domestic destinations till April 14 in line with the government decision.
With this move of the national flag carrier, the entire air connectivity between Bangladesh and Europe including to the UK will remain suspended till April 14.
This is the second time Bangladesh extended flight suspension period as the government earlier extended it from March 31 to April 7 while the ban on international flights began from March 16.
The government imposed a ban on domestic flight operation on March 25 that also has been decided today to extend till April 14 as well to contain the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic.
Earlier, Bangladesh imposed a ban on traveler’s from all European countries except the UK from March 16 to March 31.
On March 21, the CAAB imposed a ban on commercial flight operation to and from 10 overseas countries – Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Turkey, Malaysia, Oman, Singapore and India – till March 31 midnight to contain the spread of covid-19 in Bangladesh.
These 10 countries also restricted the entry of Bangladeshis to their territories over the coronavirus fear.
The Dhaka-Bangkok route, which is also out of the CAAB’s ban, was discontinued by all the airlines due to some strict measures imposed by Thailand immigration amid COVID-19 pandemic.
