Biman Bangladesh Airlines has so far incurred a loss of over Tk939 crore since the start of Covid-19 pandemic, and the amount of loss rises each day, said Aviation Secretary Mohibul Haque.
However, the ministry also predicted that the national flag carrier can resume its flight operations in Domestic routes in June.
According to the ministry, in January Biman lost Tk40.22 crore, February Tk75.27 crore, March Tk284.83 crore, and April Tk538.87 crore.
Additionally, the national flag carrier also predicts that the airlines will see a total loss of Tk780 crore in two months - Tk381 crore in May and Tk399 crore in June.
Aviation Secretary Mohibul Haque said Biman paid all its due from its own savings till April. The loan Biman received from the government will bear the costs for May and June.
On April 30, Sonali Bank approved a loan of Tk1,000 crore to Biman Bangladesh Airlines with conditions, while Biman had sought Tk1,500 crore due to fund crisis.
However, Biman also earned revenues from operating chartered flights, which is not mentionable, said Aviation secretary.
He also predicted that Biman could resume operating flights from June in Domestic routes.
Besides, they are making preparations to operate flights like the other international airport including Hamad International Airport in Doha, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta Airport (Atlanta), Los Angeles International Airport, Heathrow Airport (London), Frankfurt am Main Airport (Frankfurt), Madrid-Barajas Airport (Spain), etc.
They are also taking steps to make the airport fully prepared to combat Covid-19 by May 30 while following the preparations taken by those other international airports, the secretary said.
Passengers can travel with unused tickets
Passengers will be eligible for refunds also. Biman passengers will be able to travel using their unused tickets of until March 14, 2021, without any added charge.
Passengers will also be eligible for refunds on these tickets within this period, Biman Bangladesh Airlines CEO Mokabbir Hossain said on Wednesday.
The Civil Aviation Ministry is planning to resume all flights after the Eid holidays.
The ministry has also decided to waive charges, both aeronautical and non-aeronautical, to help airlines with the economic crisis caused by the global Covid-19 pandemic.
Earlier, on March 21, the government had suspended all international passenger flights.
Later, on March 24, the government suspended operations of all domestic flights to control the transmission of coronavirus in the country.
The Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) recently extended suspension of passenger flights to all countries till May 16.
