DHAKA, Feb 20, 2024 (BSS) - Civil aviation and tourism minister Muhammad Faruk Khan today said that the modern state of art 3rd Terminal of the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport (HSIA) will be operational for passengers from October this year.

"Apart from that modernization endeavor of the country's other international and domestic airports are ongoing in line with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's goal to make Bangladesh as an aviation hub," he said.

The minister said this during a meeting with the Executive Committee of the Aviation and Tourism Journalists' Forum of Bangladesh (ATJFB) at the secretariat here.

Civil Aviation and Tourism Secretary Md Mokammel Hossain, ATJFB president Md. Tanzim Anwar and acting General secretary Baten Biplob and other EC members were present in the meeting, among others.

The minister said the fleet of Biman Bangladesh Airlines has been reshuffled while the national flag carrier is working on exploring new routes to both east and west.
 
In the line of the initiatives, he said the state-owned carrier is all set for resuming of the Dhaka-Rome-Dhaka flight after 9 years from March 26, marking the Independence Day while Biman has decided to add more wide body planes to its fleet.

Regarding purchasing new aircraft, the minister said, currently Biman is reviewing proposals from both aircraft manufacturing giants US based Boeing and European Airbus and the airline will buy planes as per its commercial viability.
 
The minister informed that the country's revenue earning has been increased and air surveillance covers the entire airspace as a new Radar System installed at HSIA.

About the tourism sector, Khan said the government has already formulated the Tourism Master Plan for the first time which will be implemented soon for ensuring planned and sustainable tourism development.

"We have made plan to attract more inbound tourists as number of domestic tourists has already been increased significantly with the efforts of the government and private stakeholders," he said.

In the last 15 years, Khan said the country's aviation and tourism industry has continuously flourished while the role of mass media is critical in advancing this achievement in the future.

Pledging to provide all types of assistance to journalists for their professional endeavor, the minister hoped that journalists would portray the potentiality of Bangladesh's aviation and tourism with a positive and patriotic mind as one of the stakeholders of the sector.

He ensured for arranging workshops and trainings programs for aviation and tourism reporters considering the technical and sensitivity of the sector.