‘Drastic’ measures at Biman to regain public trust

Biman has taken 'drastic measures' to regain passengers' confidence after the recent spate of technical issues in its aircraft that raised questions about the quality of its maintenance and safety.

The national flag carrier has formed a four-member high-powered committee to investigate the technical issues between July 1 and August 13, said ABM Raoshan Kabir, spokesperson of Biman.

Led by Tanvir Khurshid, the airline's chief of technical, the committee has been asked to submit its report within 10 working days.

The committee will recommend how to avoid the recurrence of any such technical issues in the future.

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Besides, Biman's Engineering department and flight operations department are also separately investigating each of the big technical issues, which seemed unusual, Raoshan said.

From now on, Biman will have a dedicated engineering team for the night shift under a special arrangement for any technical issues, The Daily Star has learnt from people involved with the proceedings.

In the last month, there have been at least 10 incidents in which Biman's Boeing and DHC Dash-8 aircraft experienced technical issues before or after takeoff.

While technical issues are common in any airline, the recurring nature of the problems has raised concerns about the safety standards and maintenance practices at Biman, according to aviation experts.

In the last 30 days, international flights to Abu Dhabi, Bangkok, Dammam, Singapore and Kuala Lumpur have faced problems mid-air, according to Biman.

Allegations have been raised that engineers working at Biman are not doing their jobs properly. Multiple sources attributed the crisis to improper execution of scheduled "checks" and "servicing", a shortage of experienced engineers and a lack of spare parts.

At least three of its 10 widebody planes, three Boeing 787s and one Boeing 777 are grounded.

Subsequently, flight schedules have been seriously disrupted, affecting multiple onward services and increasing operational and passenger-handling costs, Biman officials said.

Biman's present fleet comprises six Boeing 787s, four Boeing 777-300ERs, four Boeing 737s and five Dash-8Q400s.

The carrier is now operating flights to 21 international and seven domestic destinations.

Under the increased direct supervision programme, the director of the engineering department and three chief engineers have been asked to strengthen their existing monitoring system, Raoshan said.

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Besides, Biman has taken measures so that spare parts remain available at all times. For instance, the airline will store wheels of aircraft, he said.

An engineer from Chittagong has also been withdrawn over negligence, The Daily Star has learnt from people with direct knowledge of the matter.

"I welcome Biman's such measures although they realised it late -- I hope their drastic measures will be fruitful in removing the passengers' negative perception and lack of confidence in the airline," said Kazi Wahidul Alam, an aviation expert and a former member of the Biman board.

Biman will have to take a zero-tolerance policy for effectively implementing its new measures in a bid to regain public confidence, he added.