TDS Desk:

Biman Bangladesh Airlines achieved over 36 percent sales growth from September 2024 to January 2025 compared to the same period in the previous year, driven by competitive fare structures, the lifting of sales restrictions, and optimized revenue management strategies.

The national flag carrier sold tickets worth Taka 4,057 crore during the five-month period, nearly Taka 1,100 crore more than Taka 2,982 crore recorded from September 2023 to January 2024, Biman Managing Director and CEO Dr Md. Shafiqur Rahman on Sunday.

Breaking down the growth, Rahman said Biman witnessed a 37 percent rise in sales through the Billing and Settlement Plan (BSP), a 3 percent increase at its sales counters, and a 27 percent jump via its website.

“The increase in web sales was driven by the removal of international selling restrictions, effective promotional activities, and a rise in credit card transactions, which helped lower Global Distribution System (GDS) costs,” Rahman added.

Cargo sales also showed significant improvement, with notable peaks in September 2024 and October 2024, registering growth rates of 146.23 percent and 101.96 percent, respectively, compared to the same months in the previous year.

Rahman highlighted that the completion of a Special Prorate Agreement (SPA) with ITA Airways has boosted sales in Italy and other European cities.

“After the agreement with ITA Airways, Biman passengers can now travel to all Italian destinations and major European cities from Rome via ITA under the interline arrangement,” he said.

Interline ticketing is a commercial agreement between airlines that allows passengers to book a single ticket for itineraries involving multiple carriers, streamlining the booking process and baggage handling for connecting flights.

Rahman further revealed that interline e-ticketing (IET) with Japan Airlines (JAL), a comprehensive SPA with Turkish Airlines, and an SPA with Hainan Airlines are in progress.

Additionally, Biman is preparing to launch a business-to-business (B2B) travel agent portal, with credit card acceptance in key markets such as Italy, Canada, the UK, and Japan nearing implementation.

“Once these initiatives are fully implemented, sales and revenue will increase even further,” Rahman asserted.

However, he acknowledged that Biman is struggling to expand its flight frequency or operate to potentially profitable international destinations due to aircraft shortages.

“We cannot expand our routes due to aircraft shortages. We are trying to get some aircraft on a long-term lease, which will eventually be purchased,” Rahman said.

Currently, Biman operates flights to nearly 25 international destinations including Abu Dhabi, Bangkok, Dammam, Delhi, Doha, Dubai, Guangzhou, Jeddah, Kathmandu, Kolkata, Kuala Lumpur, Kuwait, London, Manchester, Medina, Muscat, Toronto, Tokyo, Riyadh, Sharjah, and Singapore with a fleet of 21 aircraft – four Boeing 777-300 ER, four Boeing 787-8, two Boeing 787-9, six Boeing 737 and five Dash 8-400.