CAAB rejects UAE civil aviation proposal

UAE-based carriers at present operate 129 flights to Bangladesh each week
The Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) has rejected the proposal from the General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA), the aviation regulatory body of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which had requested an increase in flight frequency and the fifth freedom facility to operate flights from Bangladesh to third countries.
CAAB took the decision after a two-day meeting with GCAA officials amid protests from local airlines against the UAE’s proposal. The local airlines claim CAAB would be acting against the interests of Bangladesh if it approved the proposal.
A day before the meeting with the GCAA began, a lawyer of the Supreme Court served a legal notice against granting approval to the ultra-low-cost Abu Dhabi-based airline Wizz Air to carry passengers to and from Dhaka under an aviation trade agreement between the two countries.
The notice was served on the secretary of the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism, managing director and CEO of the national carrier Biman, chairman of the Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) and members of the CAAB flight standards and regulations on May 14, following the publication of a report titled “Wizz Air eyes Bangladesh’s aviation market” in Dhaka Tribune on May 7.
The legal notice urged CAAB to refrain from implementing a “wrong economic policy” that would bring down Bangladesh’s aviation sector amid the ongoing dollar crunch.
The notice emphasized that the five UAE-based airlines in Bangladesh — Emirates, Etihad Airways, Flydubai, Air Arabia, and Air Arabia Abu Dhabi — would face risk in their business operations with the entry of a low-cost airline in the country.
Not only international airlines, but also the country’s private and national airlines — Biman, US Bangla, NovoAir, and AirAstra — would face the risk of losing passengers.
However, Dhaka Tribune has learnt that CAAB will consider part of the UAE’s proposal, potentially approving 50 additional flights.
According to aviation sources, UAE-based carriers at present operate 129 flights to Bangladesh each week. During the meeting, the UAE had requested a further 129 flights.
Biman currently operates just 29 flights to the UAE each week.