Airbus has called for Biman’s fleet decision to be based strictly on commercial and technical merit, saying it wants the evaluation to remain factual and fair as Bangladesh enters a critical growth phase in aviation, reports BSS.
Talking to journalists during his Dhaka visit, Wouter van Wersch, Executive Vice President International of Airbus, said that he hoped the Biman Bangladesh Airline’s techno-financial evaluation will remain professional and objective. “We hope the evaluation will be based on the merits of the offers. We want the decision to be factual, based on commercial, technical and capacity-building value,” he said.
Head of Customer Accounts for Airbus India and South Asia Edward Delahaye also accompanied him during the visit. Describing Bangladesh’s aviation growth ‘one of the strongest in the world, Wersch said that Bangladesh is on “a strong development path” and that air connectivity will increasingly shape economic progress. “Today, as we know, there are about 13 million passengers going through Bangladesh, and the objective is to reach 28.5 million in 2030, which means the growth of the aviation sector is quite substantial, six percent yearly which is nearly double the world average,” he said.
With air travel to the Middle East, North America and Southeast Asia rising sharply, Wersch argued that Biman is ideally placed to capture this demand.
“Biman, as the flag carrier in Bangladesh, is very well positioned to capture this growth and to continue opening new routes and bringing a lot of revenue also to the country,” he said.
For immediate needs, Airbus confirmed it has already proposed support to Biman to source leased aircraft before its own delivery slots.
Eduard said, “Yes. We always do that with every customer… We can help build a solution to source capacity before our own delivery slots.”
“If Biman selects Airbus, we will push and convince lessors to provide aircraft as a bridge… We are not a lessor, but we will facilitate availability depending on what lessors have,” Van Wersch said.
Airbus pitches the A321neo and A350 as core long-term solutions.
Describing the manufacturer’s product portfolio, van Wersch said Airbus holds “a very strong position, if not a leadership position, on the commercial aircraft side,” including single-aisle, widebody, defence, space and helicopter platforms.
He highlighted the A321neo as a natural fit for Biman’s regional and mid-haul needs, saying, “In September we overtook the number of deliveries from the 737 if you look at the whole family. There have now been more A320 family aircraft delivered than the 737s from Boeing.”
He described the type as “a very successful aircraft that could answer the needs on the single-aisle side.”
For long-haul ambitions, he positioned the A350-900 or A350-1000 as unmatched, “There is our long-range leader, the A350, in two versions – the -900 and the -1000 – and of course also the freighter… from Dhaka, you can open all the key cities in the US, until Los Angeles, and you can cover all the other key cities in Asia and Australia where the airline would go.”
Eduard said the A350-900 has the lowest seat-mile cost and the widest cabin in its class, while the A350-1000 is the longest-range aircraft in the world.
He added that on Dhaka-Toronto, the A350-900 can fly “non-stop with more passengers and more cargo,” whereas the 787 currently cannot.
Van Wersch said, “For Dhaka-Los Angeles or Dhaka-New York, the A350-900 is the only aircraft that can do it non-stop.”
Delahaye said that market strength in Bangladesh is visible without detailed modeling. “You don’t need to make a market analysis – it stands in front of you. When you have 777s from Emirates, from Qatar, from Saudia, flights from Kuwait already here, it means there is a big market,” he added.
On whether introducing Airbus would increase training or maintenance complexity, Eduard explained that Airbus’ cockpit commonality eliminates many transition costs.
“Introducing Airbus will not be more expensive… Our cockpit commonality – from A321 to A350 – saves significant cost because pilots can fly multiple types.”
Van Wersch said Airbus is comfortable supporting either an all-Airbus or mixed fleet, “If Biman chooses a mixed fleet, we are ready. Many airlines operate mixed fleets, but Airbus offers major efficiency advantages due to cross-type commonality.”
Van Wersch said Airbus is not merely bidding to sell aircraft, but plans broader engagement to support Bangladesh’s aviation ecosystem.
He also called for raising capacity-building, MRO (Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul) partnerships, regulatory cooperation, and skills development.
“We also want to bring support in the cooperation between the Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) and, for example, European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) from a regulatory perspective, but also for flight safety, training and certification.”
*
Email *
Website
