DHAKA: Bangladesh’s national carrier Biman Bangladesh Airlines is evaluating a proposal to buy 10 Airbus aircraft, after earlier this month agreeing its biggest-ever purchase, 14 planes from US manufacturer Boeing, officials said Sunday.
Dhaka’s state-run BSS news agency said that Biman was assessing the European offer, after committing an estimated $3.7 billion to the Boeing order.
“We have received a fresh proposal from Airbus recently and our techno-finance committee is now evaluating it,” Biman General Manager Bushra Islam told BSS.
The proposal is for four Airbus A350-900 wide-body aircraft and six Airbus A321neo jets, BSS reported.
“A mixed fleet allows an airline to deploy the most suitable aircraft depending on passenger demand, route performance and cost structure,” Islam told BSS.
Biman on May 1 agreed to the 14-plane Boeing purchase — a deal negotiated last year as part of a tariff agreement with the United States.
That deal calls for the delivery over the next decade of eight 787-10 Dreamliners, two 787-9 Dreamliners and four single-aisle 737-8 MAX jets.