Oman Air, Air France, And Saudia Airlines Among Major International Carriers Set To Open Offices In Bangladesh, Thanks To New Government Policy

Published on November 4, 2025

Oman Air, Air France, and Saudia Airlines, on pinch different world carriers, are poised to unfastened offices successful Bangladesh pursuing a groundbreaking authorities argumentation change. This caller inaugural allows overseas airlines to run done their ain offices, eliminating nan erstwhile request to trust connected section agents. The move is group to amended operational efficiency, boost competition, and fortify Bangladesh’s position arsenic a cardinal hub successful nan world aviation network.

The authorities of Bangladesh is moving guardant pinch plans to let overseas airlines to found their ain offices successful nan country, breaking from nan existing regulations that person required world carriers to trust connected a azygous locally owned supplier for their operations. This projected alteration marks a important displacement successful Bangladesh’s civilian aviation assemblage and is designed to heighten competition, transparency, and nan wide work value successful nan aviation industry.

Under nan caller rules being drafted successful nan “Civil Aviation (Amendment) Ordinance-2025,” airlines that take not to found a section agency successful Bangladesh will person nan action to name aggregate Bangladeshi-owned firms arsenic their wide income agents (GSAs). Domestic airlines will besides person nan action to name agents of their choosing. This projected revision will supply greater elasticity and let overseas carriers to person much nonstop power complete their operations, which could consequence successful much competitory pricing and amended services for travelers.

Currently, nan Civil Aviation Act-2017 prohibits overseas airlines from mounting up their ain offices successful Bangladesh. Instead, they are required to partner pinch a single, locally owned supplier for their operations successful nan country. This norm has agelong been seen arsenic restrictive, limiting title and perchance starring to higher costs for some nan airlines and their passengers. The caller amendment intends to reside these concerns by offering overseas airlines much autonomy successful really they run wrong Bangladesh’s borders.

The Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism has drafted nan projected amendment and made it disposable online for nationalist reappraisal and feedback. The authorities is seeking input from stakeholders wrong nan aviation assemblage to guarantee that nan changes align pinch nan champion interests of nan industry, arsenic good arsenic nan passengers who trust connected it for travel. Once enacted, nan amendments are expected to promote much airlines to participate nan Bangladeshi marketplace and amended nan wide value of aerial travel.

A elder charismatic from nan Civil Aviation Ministry explained that nan superior extremity of these changes is to forestall marketplace monopolies, amended transparency, and guarantee that passengers are protected from unfair practices. The charismatic stressed that nan purpose is not only to pull much airlines to Bangladesh but besides to found a adjacent and competitory situation that would yet use travelers.

However, not everyone is successful favour of nan projected changes. Employees of various GSAs person expressed their concerns by staging protests, including a quality concatenation successful beforehand of nan National Press Club. They person urged nan authorities to clasp nan existent strategy that requires airlines to partner pinch a azygous GSA. The protestors warned that removing this proviso could harm nan manufacture and put nan livelihoods of thousands of workers astatine risk. They reason that GSAs person played a important domiciled successful nan improvement of Bangladesh’s aviation assemblage and that altering nan strategy could create uncertainty and instability successful nan market.

The draught amendment besides includes stricter regulations surrounding airfares and penalties for malpractice. Under nan caller rules, immoderate recreation agency recovered charging passengers supra nan approved tariff will beryllium committing an offence and will beryllium required to refund up to 3 times nan excess magnitude collected. This proviso intends to forestall value gouging and guarantee that airlines and recreation agencies adhere to transparent and adjacent pricing policies.

Furthermore, nan draught rule introduces dense penalties for practices specified arsenic hoarding tickets aliases trading them astatine inflated prices. Airlines aliases recreation agents recovered blameworthy of creating artificial shortages aliases value hikes could look imprisonment for up to 5 years, a good of up to Tk50 lakh (approximately USD 50,000), aliases both. These penalties are designed to deter unethical practices and protect consumers from exploitation.

The amendment besides empowers nan Chairman of nan Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) to intervene straight successful cases wherever monopolistic behavior, abnormal value hikes, aliases artificial shortages are detected. If necessary, nan CAAB president will beryllium capable to group a reasonable fare for immoderate route, ensuring that prices stay adjacent and competitory for each passengers.

Concerns complete irregularities successful Bangladesh’s civilian aviation sector, including value manipulation and artificial shortages, person been ongoing for years. The authorities has faced disapproval for not doing capable to reside these issues, and nan caller amendments are seen arsenic a measurement toward rectifying these longstanding problems. However, immoderate manufacture insiders stay skeptical astir whether nan changes will person nan desired effect, particularly successful ray of nan protests from GSAs and different stakeholders who fearfulness losing their jobs aliases business opportunities.

In summation to nan changes related to overseas hose operations, nan draught rule besides includes provisions for mandatory registration of crushed handling companies and world distribution strategy (GDS) providers. Ground operators seeking to activity successful Bangladesh will request to meet specified conditions and get support from nan CAAB Chairman. Similarly, GDS providers must registry pinch nan CAAB earlier conducting business successful nan country, and unregistered operations will beryllium prohibited.

One of nan cardinal aspects of nan amendment is nan granting of real-time entree to GDS information for nan CAAB chairman. This would let for continuous monitoring of bookings and fares, ensuring that airlines, recreation agencies, and different operators adhere to regulations and do not prosecute successful anti-consumer practices. If grounds of harmful practices emerges, .

A Global Distribution System (GDS) is simply a integer level that enables airlines, recreation agents, and online recreation services to cheque formation availability, comparison fares, and rumor tickets successful existent time. By giving nan CAAB president entree to this system, nan authorities hopes to guarantee greater transparency and accountability successful nan industry.

Oman Air, Air France, and Saudia Airlines are group to unfastened offices successful Bangladesh, acknowledgment to a caller authorities argumentation allowing overseas carriers to bypass section agents. This alteration intends to heighten operational ratio and foster greater title successful nan country’s aviation market.

Overall, nan projected amendments to Bangladesh’s Civil Aviation Act correspond a important displacement successful really nan country’s aviation assemblage operates. While nan changes are aimed astatine improving title and transparency, they person besides sparked concerns among immoderate stakeholders who fearfulness nan imaginable disruption to nan existing system. As nan draught amendment moves done nan consultation process, it remains to beryllium seen really nan last regulations will equilibrium nan interests of airlines, GSAs, and consumers.