Biman Bangladesh is responsible for most of the ground-handling of all the airports across the country and people familiar with the matter are of the view that mismanagement on the airlines’ part is causing accidents at the Dhaka airport to rise.

According to them, the lack of trained manpower and monitoring has given rise to the number of accidents reported over the years, with some staff sustaining injuries that left long-term effects.

Airport sources said that till August of this year, 17 ground employees were injured in accidents and the authorities are not concerned about their training or safety as they are hired on contractual basis and appointed as ‘casual workers.’

Moreover, Biman authorities only started providing them with medical allowances from July of this year. Prior to this the days, they missed out on work was deducted from their paychecks.

Around 39 airlines, both local and international operate 250 flights from Dhaka airport every day. Amongst them, only three local airlines carry their own ground-handling procedures while the rest of them outsourced it to Biman.

Biman procured around Tk 1 billion worth of equipment for ground-handling in 2017 and proper training is imperative to operate them which they aren’t provided with.

Meanwhile, the highest speed limit at the airport’s apron area is 15 kilometres per hour but the authorities responsible don’t monitor vehicle movements either which leads to more accidents.

In August of 2017, cargo helper Md Selim sustained severe injuries due to Biman’s Ground Support Equipment (GSE) operator Md Nazrul operating a towing tractor. In October of that year, the blades of a Biman aircraft (Boeing 737-800) engine were damaged due to a belt loader.

The next year in September a Novo Air ATR 72-500 aircraft was damaged after being hit by a towing tractor.

In the same way several casual traffic helpers were injured, with some being hit by towing tractors or equipment.

Several ground handling employees told Bangla Tribune that those appointed are given a week of training.  Moreover, since the pay is less, the staff has a tendency to work overtime increasing the chances of mistakes.

They said that since the employees responsible for monitoring don’t carry out their duties properly, steps are not taken even if someone breaks the rule.

Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport former director Zakir Hossain says, “Trained staff is needed for airport work.”

He added that not only training but the staff must also be monitored as well and there should be enough manpower to work three to four shifts.

Biman Bangladesh Airlines acting Managing Director and CEO Farhat Hassan Jamil was unreachable for comments and their public relations division didn’t receive Bangla Tribune’s call or reply to the texts.

Civil Aviation and Tourism Secretary Md Mohibul Haque said that those working in ground handling are being injured in many ways.

“Biman has a training centre where training is being arranged,” he said and added that the airlines have to bear the expenses if someone is injured on-duty.