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Rejoinder, our reply
FROM PAGE 1
was working for last 06 (six) months on the Airbus was given the responsibility to evaluate the earlier report and submit its report.
It is worth mentioning that no new committee/second committee was formed rather due to normal retirement of the Committee Chairman from the service, then the Co-Chairman was given the responsibility of the existing TFC.
The same TFC applied the standard apps used by other airlines in calculating fluctuation of prices like cost of ticket, fuel and other incidental expenses and earning. So the TFC did not make a U-turn as alleged rather used technology to provide right picture about the purchase.
The report also mentions that Biman is a losing concern about which we would like to state firmly that Biman is always on the operational profit and has been able to pay all its dues and installments to all the foreign companies including Boeing.
It is noteworthy that, Biman Bangladesh Airlines is a 100% state-owned national flag carrier limited company and fully covers all operating expenses including aircraft purchase, payment of advance installments and maintenance related expenses with its own income.
Biman is being rated AAA long term rating by Dun & Bradstreet South Asia Middle East Ltd., a renowned US credit rating agency. During Covid pandemic Biman was given BDT1000 Crore by the Government as loan under incentive package but The Daily Star failed to mention that the amount with interest was paid back to the Government in less than 01 (one) year.
Besides, there are standard laid down policies for purchasing new aircraft to the fleet. Aircraft procurement process is conducted by following the said policy without any deviation. Discussions with Airbus have recently started with the signing of a Joint Communique on the acquisition of Airbus and mutual cooperation in the aviation sector.
At the same time, discussions are ongoing with Biman’s long-time tested business partner, the aircraft manufacturer Boeing Company. The final decision will be made public through press briefing after the conclusion of due internal process. Besides, as part of the expansion process, the pilot recruitment program is currently ongoing.
The national flag carrier, Biman Bangladesh Airlines has been providing regular passenger and cargo services as well as operating Hajj flights, VVIP flights, UN mission flights and special flights on various national and international calamities like Covid-19.
With a fleet of only 21 (twenty-one) state-of-the-art aircraft, Biman Bangladesh Airlines currently operates regular flights to 23 (twenty-three) international and 8 (eight) domestic destinations despite many limitations. Recently, 04 (four) new routes have been launched by the existing 21 (twenty-one) aircraft. It may be noted here that out of 21 (twenty-one) aircraft, only 10 (ten) are used for long range, 06 (six) short range and 05 (five) domestic destinations.
In order to increase the number of passengers by air, in the coming days, Biman Bangladesh Airlines is constantly working to expand the passenger services to destinations like Male, Kunming, New York, Sydney, Wuhan, Jakarta, Seoul etc. Due to various reasons, it has not been possible to add the required number of aircraft to the fleet till now. As a result, it is not possible to launch flights on many attractive routes despite of huge demand.
In order to increase the network and quality of passenger services in keeping pace with the increasing passengers demand, a plan has already been adopted to expand the aircraft fleet from 21 (twenty-one) to 47 (forty-seven) by 2035. For this purpose, the process of reviewing the proposals of the aircraft manufacturers is ongoing as per the guidelines of the Biman Board of Directors and the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism.
In order to cope with the competitive aviation business and to operate business profitably, when a process for procurement of aircraft is underway to implement future fleet expansion which is expected to go through various stages before finalization, such kind of news are being used to mislead the public with ill intention by making concocted story with speculative and unsubstantiated information.
Such kinds of news damages the image of the state flag carrier Biman Bangladesh Airlines. Biman Bangladesh Airlines is a state-owned airline which sometimes has to operate under the requirement of the nation. Biman’s Positive contribution seldom gets media coverage.
A case in point is the recent Malaysian Flights where Biman charged only about BDT70,000 whereas other airlines charged over BDT100,000 per passenger. The Daily Star failed to report this comparison to the public.
Biman has consistently maintained its success as a profitable company. Biman has been making profit consistently especially in the last three years (post-Covid period) and is operating profitably in the current fiscal year as well.
In such a situation, Biman Management urges all concerned to stop publishing misleading news that creates negative impression in the public mind based on unsupported, partial and false information and refrain from trying to hinder the development of Biman Bangladesh Airlines.
THE DAILY STAR’S RESPONSE
Only selective portions of Biman’s 854-word rejoinder directly pertains to the report in question while the rest is details in length the many achievements of the national flag carrier, which are not relevant to the topic at hand.
The Daily Star acknowledges the usage of the term “new committee” and only in that regard, we stand corrected – but we still stand by the fact that reconstituted committee did not have the same members.
While the chairman of the committee retired and went back to his mother organisation (Bangladesh Air Force) in the time period between the two reports, that is hardly the only change in constitution of the committee.
The general manager of finance and accounts, the general manger of internal audit, a deputy secretary of the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism (MoCAT) and the dean of aviation standardisation of the regulations and safety department from Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Aviation and Aerospace University (BSMRAAU) were noticeably missing from the reconstituted committee.
The reconstituted (second) committee additionally had the director of engineering and material management, the deputy general manager of cost and budget, the dean of the faculty of aviation engineering and technology of BSMRAAU, and a senior assistant secretary from MoCAT – all new faces in the committee that produced the second report.
The first committee had 20 members, meaning 25 percent of the committee was reconstituted for the second evaluation.
Given that the reconstituted committee had three days to overturn the evaluation, the four new members out of 19 hardly had any time to fully acquaint themselves with the complex research this issue required and come to a conclusion.
The fact still remains, that this committee was given such a short time – which was not contested by the rejoinder – to evaluate a multimillion dollar deal that will impact the aviation sector in next two decades to follow.
The rejoinder said that the technofinancial committee used “technology” and “standard apps” to provide the “right picture” about the purchase – both vague terms. This begs the question – was the first committee not using technology to create their extremely detailed and technically exhaustive report?
A comparison between the two reports that they are differ mainly in two regards: the cash-flow statement and the recommendation about whether or not to procure the aircrafts.
The two reports are almost identical in the sections detailing the challenges of inducting Airbus planes, and the estimates of investment required.
This includes the cost estimates for maintenance, cost estimates for training and recruitment, and details on how the planes will be financed and what the financial packages will be.
This raises the question – if “technology” was used to arrive at different finding for profit and loss, then why are the sections on evaluation of investment estimates identical? At no point in its second evaluation report or Biman’s rejoinder has Biman shown how it overcame these investment challenges to arrive at the net profit estimates that it did.
About losses – the newspaper simply detailed out which sectors were not profitable, and cited audit objections made by the government’s Commercial Audit Directorate that were submitted to a Parliamentary Standing Committee.
The Directorate’s report said that in the 2022-23 fiscal, Biman Bangladesh Airlines made a net loss of Tk 259.1 million (Tk 25 crore 91 lakh) in its main airline business. The report also detailed that Biman concealed its liabilities, e.g. money owed to Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh.
The rejoinder stated that a plan has already been adopted to expand the aircraft fleet from 21 (twenty-one) to 47 (forty-seven) by 2035. The Daily Star is in possession of documents showing that at the time of publication, the Biman Fleet Planning Committee’s permission had not been taken before making strides in procuring Airbus planes, a deviation from Biman’s own procurement policy.
The Daily Star stands by its report.

Israeli forces
FROM PAGE 12
the offensive that began on October 7, the Gaza health ministry said in a statement yesterday. Some 30 Palestinians were killed in the previous 24 hours, the ministry added.
In a statement early yesterday, Hamas urged Blinken to put “direct pressure” on Israel for permanent Gaza ceasefire.
“He continues to talk about Israel’s agreement of the latest (ceasefire) proposal, but we have not heard any Israeli official speak out on this,” it said.
Israel is standing behind a ceasefire proposal for the eight-month-old offensive in the Gaza Strip, White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said yesterday, and the goal is to bridge gaps with Hamas and get to a deal soon.
Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a Group of Seven (G7) meeting of leaders in southern Italy, Sullivan said the world should encourage the Palestinian group to accept the proposal and avoid stalemate.
The offensive in Gaza has led to widespread destruction of homes and other infrastructure, with hospitals out of service and the UN warning of famine.
In central Gaza’s Bureij refugee camp, resident Ahmed al-Rubi said he wanted an end to the “severe suffering we are going through”.
“I hope for a ceasefire,” he told AFP. “What has happened to us is enough.”