Bangladesh interested to buy two more narrow-body Dash Q400 turboprop aircraft if Bombardier comes up with a fair offer, says the civil aviation ministry.
The proposal was made when a Canadian delegation led by Canadian High Commissioner held a meeting with State Minister for Civil Aviation and Tourism M Mahbub Ali and Senior secretary of the ministry Mohibul Haque at the Secretariat in Dhaka on Thursday (Jan 2).
“We would like to buy more short-haul aircraft for our domestic routes. So we tell them (Canadian Commercial Corporation) to give us formal proposal … if we get a fair price, we are positive to buy two more planes from them,” Haque told the media after the meeting.
The secretary said the government would try to negotiate to purchase two Dash aircraft at a lower price than the rate of three ordered same modelled planes.
“If we buy from them (bombardier), we will go for either lower or same price of the ordered planes … definitely not more than those (three purchased Dash Q400),” he was quoted as saying by BSS.
The delegation comprised with CCC director of Asian region Yvonee Chin informed that Bombardier can deliver two more Dash Q400 aircraft by 2021 if Bangladesh wants.
Bombardier offered Bangladesh to sell two more Dash Q400 turboprops aircraft after delivering three brand new same 74-seater narrow-body planes to Biman Bangladesh Airlines.
Biman acquired two Bombardier Dash 8 Q400 planes under dry lease for five years in April 2015 to resume its domestic flight operations after a three-year hiatus as the national flag carrier was forced to shut down all domestic flights in 2012 due to lack of aircraft.
Biman now operates flights to five domestic destinations with these two rented Dash 8 aircraft where two private carrier Novoair and US-Bangla airlines run flight to the country’s all seven domestic destinations with much higher frequency.
In August 2018, the Biman signed G2G (government-to-government) agreement with Canadian Commercial Corporation (CCC0) to purchase three Dash Q400NG series aircraft from Bombardier as the lease period of the current two turboprops expires by mid-2020.
Bombardier is scheduled to deliver the three Dash planes in March, May and June in 2020.
Based on the list price of the Q400 aircraft, the order is valued at approximately $106 million, Bombardier said in a statement after signing the agreement.
In November 2016, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs approved a proposal of Civil Aviation and Tourism Ministry allowing Biman Bangladesh Airlines to procure three aircraft from the Canadian firm.
As per the fleet expansion plan, Biman this month added two brand new Boeing 787-9 dream liners that raised its current aircraft number at 18 (12 owned and 6 rented).
In 2008, Biman Bangladesh Airlines signed a $2.1 billion agreement with Boeing to purchase 10 new aircraft and as per the deal, Boeing has delivered all the aircraft -- four 777-300ER, two 737-800 ER and four Dreamliner 787-8.