The New Nation - Internet Edition

Staff Reporter

The world largest commercial aircraft manufacturer Airbus SAS of France and US airplane producer Boeing are competing to supply aircraft to Biman Bangladesh Airlines.

Official sources yesterday said the Biman has received separate offers from Airbus SAS and Boeing to sell a dozen of airplanes in total to the national carrier.

On January 21 (2008), Biman Bangladesh Airlines Company Ltd floated an international tender to purchase aircrafts.

In response to the tender recently, Boeing has offered to supply eight planes, while Airbus four aircraft, the sources said.

"We will evaluate both the offers soon and will make a decision, as we badly need aircraft to maintain flight schedules," Managing Director of Biman Bangladesh Airlines Company Ltd Dr M A Moman told journalists yesterday, adding, "The purchase decision will be announced by March 15."

Boeing had offered to supply four Boeing 777-200 planes and four Boeing 787 aircraft within 2013 and 2017 respectively. The approximate average price per aircraft, as per the proposal, is US165 million dollars, while Airbus offered to supply four aircraft from the A320, A321 and A330 models without mentioning a timeframe for supplying, official sources added.

Airbus prices would be lower than Boeing, an official said without disclosing the price offered.

Biman was forced to stop flights to New York, Paris, Tokyo, Frankfurt, Brussels, Yangon and Mumbai routes in 2006 due to lack of funds and aircraft.

Biman now operates flights to 19 international destinations with a fleet of 12 aircraft and facing tough competition from four other small local private airlines companies.

One of these carriers has extended its operations beyond the country to include regional routes connecting Dhaka to Kuala Lampur, Singapore, Delhi and Dubai.

At least two other airlines want to extend its flights into the South Asian region as Bangladesh and India have recently agreed to increase flight frequencies between the two countries.