Government officials must fly by Biman Bangladesh Airlines on the routes where the national flag carrier operates flights, says Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

Her directives came on Tuesday (Sept 17) after inaugurating the fourth Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner.

“I have decided that government officials have to fly by Biman Bangladesh Airlines for travelling,” she said after commissioning the aircraft, called ‘Rajhangsha’, at the Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka.

The fourth Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, the 16th aircraft of the national flag carrier, was added to the Biman’s fleet on September 14. It landed at HSIA directly from the USA’s Seattle’s Boeing Factory in the afternoon on the day.

Biman’s acting Managing Director and CEO Captain Farhat Hasan Jamil along with other high officials received the Dreamliner at the airport after welcoming it with a water cannon salute.

Earlier, the first and second Boeing 787-8 Dreamliners, named as ‘Akash Beena’ and ‘Hangsabalaka’ respectively, arrived here in August and December last year, while the third one known as ‘Gaangchil’ landed in July last.

The prime minister named all the Dreamliners, Biman sources said.

In 2008, Biman Bangladesh Airlines signed a $2.1 billion agreement with Boeing to purchase 10 new aircraft.

As per the deal, Boeing has already delivered all the aircraft – four 777-300ER’s, two 737-800’s and four Dreamliners – to Biman.

Rajhangsa, the 271-seat Boeing 787-8, has been designed as 20 percent fuel-efficient carrier compared to the other aircraft. The airliner has the capacity to fly 16 hours nonstop with an average speed of 650 miles per hour.

It will provide its passengers with WiFi services at a height of 43,000 feet, allowing passengers to browse the internet or connect with their friends and family from any place of the world.