[ALOCHONA] Aviation: Best Air buys 6 new planes

Best Air in talks to buy six new planes

Courtesy Daily Star 19/3/08

 

Best Air has opened talks with aircraft makers to purchase six new planes in a multi- million-dollar deal as part of its plan to launch several international routes.

The move comes hot on the heels on the announcement by Biman and GMG Airlines that they are also making major aircraft acquisitions and is further evidence of the increasing competition in the nation's aviation industry.

“We have plans to expand our routes to the Middle East, Far East and Europe in the coming days. It's also a part of our efforts to offer premium services to our passengers,” M Haider Uzzaman, chairman of Best Aviation, said after a meeting with a visiting team of European plane maker Airbus in Dhaka yesterday.

On Sunday, GMG Airlines said it would buy six new generation aircraft from Boeing at $900 million (Tk 6,200 crore), while on Sunday Biman singed the $1.265 billion (equivalent to Tk 8,728 crore) deal with the same supplier to get eight new aircraft.

Haider however said it was not the aircraft purchasing competition rather a complementary step considering the current volume of passengers in Bangladesh's aviation market.

“It's quite a big market. We see about 2 lakh passengers on an average a month. If we all are better equipped, we, the local carriers, would be able to recover our market lost to foreign operators,” he said.

“We want to start our international flights to Bangkok in early April,” Haider said.

The Best Air chairman said the Airbus gave a presentation of its products. “They will make their financial offers to us for a fleet of four A-320 and two A-330 aircraft shortly,” he said.

“We have presented the salient features our products here. We are more than happy talking to Best Air,” said Paul Moultrie, area sales director of Airbus Middle East following the meeting with Best Air.

Haider however said Best Air also wants to sit with the Boeing before taking any final decision.

Majority controlled by Kuwait-based Aqeeq Aviation Holding, the Best Air started its operation on country's busiest Dhaka-Chittagong route on January 14 this year with a single Boeing 737-200.

The carrier launched operation at a time when Bangladesh aviation industry is growing at about 7.6 percent a year with foreign carriers control about 90 percent of the total volume of annual air traffic due mainly to weakness of Biman.

The Best Air according to its chairman has yet to reach a break-even point, although it recorded a load factor, or seat occupancy, of about 60 percent in February from about 34 percent in January.

“We hope to reach a break even point by April,” the Best Air chairman hoped.
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