"We have already achieved 92% of the target. The rest is not achievable due to infrastructure obstacles and obsolete equipment," Biman director said.There are some big pillars at the Dhaka airport's apron area that slows down tow-trucks of baggage lorries, he said, adding that as per the direction of the Civil Aviation Authority, there is a 30km speed limit for luggage lorries and they have to go around either VIP terminal or Cargo area that further slows down the total process of luggage delivery. As per the design of the new third terminal, the existing pillars are supposed to be built to make the baggage delivery system faster, Sobhan said. He said sometimes the baggage delivery takes more time than the target of 20 minutes if 10 to 12 flights land simultaneously. The Dhaka airport currently has only eight belts, most of which are 30-40 years old. Biman General Manager for Public Relation Shakil Meraj said apart from the Red Cap, Biman has also procured some modern ground handling equipment, and 50 more are in the pipeline. The national flag carrier has already recruited 40 people for handling the new equipment and 30 more new staff will join soon. Sources at the Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) said at present, a total of 266 flights – international, domestic and cargo – are operated at the Dhaka airport every day, operated by 27 foreign and four local airlines. A total of 6.7 million passengers have used the airport during 2015-16 fiscal year, and it is estimated to increase by eight million in the current fiscal year. Presently, the airport is handling 237,000 tonnes of cargo, which is 37,000 tonnes more than its capacity.
Bangladesh’s national flag carrier has reduced the baggage delivery time to 20 minutes from one hour at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka by introducing Red Cap, a mechanism used in major international airports across the globe.
The measure was taken by addressing a protracted passenger complaint, according to BSS.
"The Red Cap system entrusts a particular person with the task of ground handling of an aircraft from its arrival to departure, including that of the passenger luggage," BSS quoted Biman's Customer Service Director Atique Sobhan as saying.
He said previously there had been a lack of coordination between personnel overseeing aircraft traffic management, luggage handlers and transport operators, which largely caused the delay in luggage delivery system.
The official said the system had now become fully operational after six months of experimental operations since November last year.
"Currently we hit the first baggage within 20 minutes after arrival of a flight and deliver the last baggage of that flight in 85 minutes... previously it took one hour to three hours," Sobhan said.
Biman last year inked a deal with the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism saying it would deliver the first baggage within 20 minutes of arrival of a flight.
