Airlines losing business as inbound passengers cancel travel plans

A large number of Bangladeshi expatriates and foreigners are now cancelling their scheduled air trips to Bangladesh due to political unrest, throwing airlines into difficulties, official sources said.
The countrywide non-stop transport blockade is taking its toll on the aviation industry, too, apart from other sectors. Both domestic and international airlines appear to be in a tailspin.
On arrival at the airports, the sources said, the incoming passengers find it hard to get transport to go to their destinations due to the indefinite blockade. So, travellers show reluctance to come to Bangladesh.
According to the Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB), the three international airports of the country handled around 2.2 million incoming passengers in 2014. Nearly 0.18 million passengers landed at these airports every month.
The CAAB data showed that, on average, 6,000 passengers land at the three airports every day. Since the beginning of the blockade on January 6, it has come down to around 4,800, a 20 per cent decline.
The Emirates Airlines, one of the leading international airlines, statistics show the company usually operates 19 flights carrying 7,000 passengers a week from several destinations, including Africa, Asia and the Pacific, Europe, North and South America and the Middle East to Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport (HSIA).
In last 39 days, the company's flights carried maximum 5,000 passengers per week, according to the official data.
Currently, 38 airlines, including the national flag-carrier Biman Bangladesh Airlines, are carrying thousands of passengers every day to three international airports -- Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka, Shah Amanat International Airport in Chittagong and MAG Osmani International Airport in Sylhet.
Mohammad Kamrul Islam, assistant general manager of United Airways, said inbound passengers dropped by minimum 25 per cent per week in last one month due to political turmoil.
He said, "Our earnings largely depend on travel of Bangladeshi migrants working in Middle-Eastern countries, Malaysia and Singapore."
"The United Airways has seriously been affected due to the countrywide blockade as Bangladeshi expatriates are now cancelling their tickets," he added.
An official of Emirates Airlines said: "Our earnings have drastically fallen with the decline in the number of inbound passengers due to the countrywide blockade and hartals."
He said the Emirates Airlines lost more than 30 per cent of their business in last 39 days as passengers in Europe as well as North and South America were cancelling their flights.
A good number of global readymade garment (RMG) buyers who were supposed to avail their airline flights also cancelled their trips, he added.
Salman Kabir, public relations manager of Sonargaon Hotel, said a large number of tourists come here during the winter season, but at present the sector is witnessing scarcity of tourists.
Foreign customers are cancelling their bookings, resulting in a drastic fall in their incomes, by more than 75 per cent, he said. Foreigners are main customers for hospitality business, he added.
Mr. Salman said tourists from different parts of the world don't feel safe to come here due to political unrest and non-stop strike enforced by the political parties.
Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) vice-president M Shahidullah Azim said under normal circumstances, a good number of international buyers arrive here every day for business deal, but in recent times, many have stopped coming.
"International business partners used to come here to inspect their apparel products at factories, but they have restricted their movement on security grounds", he said, adding that global business partners "usually don't take risk in such a volatile political situation."
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