Rumours swirl over NovoAir closure. MD says 'not true'

The airline has resumed ticket bookings after a brief suspension

Mofizur Rahman, the managing director of NovoAir, has brushed aside speculations of the private airline shutting down its services, putting an end to rumours swirling on social media.

NovoAir, one of three private airlines in Bangladesh, has recently been the topic of widespread posts across social media platforms.

On Tuesday, Mofizur denied the claim, calling it “not true”.

The speculation gathered pace after users noticed that flights after Apr 19 were unavailable for booking on NovoAir’s website.

Speaking to bdnews24.com on Tuesday afternoon, he said: “We had temporarily stopped ticket sales beyond Apr 19 for a specific reason. That’s why this rumour spread.

“Flights have now resumed, and tickets are available for booking again.”

Although ticket booking for flights after Apr 19 remained unavailable on Tuesday morning, access was restored by the afternoon.

NovoAir operates alongside US-Bangla Airlines and Air Astra as part of the country’s trio of private carriers.

Social media has been rife with reactions over the closure rumour.

Mahbub Kabir Milon posted on Facebook: “Domestic airline NovoAir is shutting down from Apr 19, 2025. This is a decision by its owners. They are exiting the business and selling off all aircraft.

“This is undeniably bad news for the aviation sector. In an age of competitive investment and enterprise, it’s hard to accept that a good, functioning airline is closing down.”

In the comments, Mallika Das wrote: “I really liked NovoAir’s services. Whatever the reason may be, it’s unfortunate that the airline is shutting down.”

A senior NovoAir official told bdnews24.com, “We are in the process of selling our smaller aircraft to acquire larger ones.

“A team of buyers had shown interest and were scheduled to inspect the aircraft. That’s why we temporarily stopped ticket sales after the 19th.

He added, “We had a meeting [on Tuesday] and decided that flights will continue. Ticket booking has reopened as well.”

Speculations of NovoAir exiting the business have circulated, across social media in particular, for nearly two years.

In late January 2024, the airline sold two ATR 72-500 aircraft to Nepal’s Yeti Airlines.

The aircraft were handed over on Feb 1 of the same year.

At the time, a NovoAir official told bdnews24.com that the sale was part of a strategy to buy aircraft suitable for longer routes, replacing the short-haul ATR fleet.

Following the sale, NovoAir now has five aircraft in its fleet.

The airline began passenger operations on Jan 9, 2013, with its maiden flight on the Dhaka–Chattogram route.

Over the past 12 years, it has operated more than 100,000 flights and served over 7.5 million passengers.

It was the first airline in Bangladesh to introduce a frequent flyer programme, co-branded cards, mobile ticketing app, and web check-in services.

The Bangladesh Monitor, a travel fortnightly, awarded NovoAir the “Best Domestic Airline” in 2014 and 2019, and “Best On-Time Performance Airline” in 2022 and 2023.

The airline now operates daily domestic flights from Dhaka to Chattogram, Cox’s Bazar, Sylhet, Jashore, Syedpur, and Rajshahi.

In December 2016, NovoAir introduced its first international route from Dhaka to Kolkata.

The route was suspended during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, resumed later, and then again suspended “temporarily” on Sep 16, 2024. The flight path was never resumed again.

Several private airlines in Bangladesh—such as United Airways, GMG Airlines, and Regent Airways—have already ceased operations in recent years.