Published : 29 Sep 2026, 10:57 PM
Updated : 29 Sep 2026, 10:57 PM
The government has announced plans to purchase 10 Airbus aircraft for Biman Bangladesh Airlines.
Civil Aviation and Tourism Minister M Rashiduzzaman Millat made the announcement at a press briefing at the Secretariat on Tuesday.
He said the decision was driven by passenger demand rather than geopolitical pressure.
The order comprises four wide-body Airbus A350-900s and six narrow-body A321neo aircraft.
The government had previously announced an in-principle decision to purchase 10 Airbus aircraft.
The latest announcement comes after Biman agreed to buy 14 Boeing aircraft in April and another 11 in September, taking its planned Boeing purchases to 25.
Millat said the Boeing purchases were also part of plans to expand Biman's fleet.
“As part of the plan to expand Biman Bangladesh's fleet, we signed an agreement to purchase 14 Boeing aircraft on Apr 30. Following that agreement, a deal to purchase an additional 11 Boeing aircraft was signed in New York on Sept 23," he said.
He had earlier said the decision to buy the Boeing aircraft was made in response to US President Donald Trump's wishes.
The Airbus purchase comes amid diplomatic pressure from France and other European countries for Biman to select Airbus aircraft.
A week earlier, French Ambassador to Dhaka Jean-Marin Schuh said the Airbus deal served as a "test" for the current government, implying that Europe's relationship with the government hinged on the purchase of Airbus aircraft.
The Airbus purchase had its origins in an earlier proposal made during the previous Awami League government.
During French President Emmanuel Macron's visit to Dhaka in September 2023, he said Bangladesh had pledged to purchase 10 large Airbus aircraft at a joint press conference with then-prime minister Sheikh Hasina.
Biman subsequently signed its first major Boeing purchase agreement this year.
With the latest Airbus announcement, Biman is set to add 35 aircraft through planned purchases from Boeing and Airbus.
