US-Bangla Airlines explained

Airline:	US-Bangla Airlines Ltd.
Iata:	BS
Icao:	UBG
Callsign:	BANGLASTAR
Frequent Flyer:	Sky Star
Fleet Size:	18
Destinations:	19
Parent:	US-Bangla Airlines Ltd.
Founded:	^[1]
Headquarters:	Dhaka, Bangladesh^[2]
Key People:	Lutfor Rahman, CEO

US-Bangla Airlines (bn|ইউএস বাংলা এয়ারলাইন্স) is the largest airline in Bangladesh by fleet size.^[3] The airline is headquartered in Dhaka and based at Shahjalal International Airport under the umbrella companies of US-Bangla Group.^{[4] [5]}

History

Foundation and early years

US-Bangla Airlines commenced operations with domestic flights on 17 July 2014. Initially, the airline launched two domestic destinations, Chittagong and Jessore, from its hub in Dhaka. Flights to Cox's Bazar from Dhaka were launched in August. In October, the airline launched flights to Saidpur.^[6]

In July 2016, the airline announced plans to phase in its first three Boeing 737-800 aircraft in September of the same year, and to subsequently launch new international routes, for example to Singapore and Dubai.^[7] On 29 April 2019, the airline started flights to Guangzhou, becoming the first Bangladeshi airline to operate flights to China.^[8] The airline started flights from Dhaka to Chennai (via Chittagong) on 31 March 2019 also becoming first Bangladeshi airline carrier to operate flights to Southern India.^[9]

In February 2019, US-Bangla Airlines announced an order for four ATR 72-600 aircraft, to be used on domestic flights. On 22 March 2019, the first aircraft was delivered from Toulouse to Dhaka via El Dabaa and Muscat.

By September 2019, US-Bangla Airlines had become the second largest airline in Bangladesh, after Biman Bangladesh Airlines, in terms of fleet size.^[10]

Development since 2020

The airline was supposed to start direct flights from Sylhet to other Bangladeshi cities such as Chittagong, Cox's Bazar and Jessore, as well as a flight from Chittagong to Jessore, in order to make the city of Sylhet more accessible, from mid-2020.^[11] The airline also announced its plans to add four more international routes to Abu Dhabi, Colombo and Malé in the beginning of 2021.^[12] However, these plans were postponed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In November 2021, a senior authority of the airline expressed the plan of expansion of the airline for both of its destinations and its fleet, as the airline is willing to add seven new international routes, i.e. Jeddah, Dammam, Medina, Riyadh, Sharjah, Abu Dhabi, Kuwait, Colombo, Sydney, New Delhi, Hyderabad etc. from Dhaka.The airline is also planning to introduce Dhaka–New York flight in future, if Bangladesh earned Civil Aviation Category–I. Subsequently, a few destinations in Europe, i.e. London, Paris, Amsterdam and Rome are being planned to be introduced by 2024 with its newly acquired Airbus A330-300.^[13]

On 9 February 2024, the airline received its first wide-body aircraft, an Airbus A330-300 leased from Hi Fly's Maltese division. It has 436 seats in all economy configurations. The airline also has plans to acquire another one. The airline plans to use these fleets in routes to cities in Middle Eastern countries including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Bahrain, and also for Hajj flights.^{[14] [15]}

Corporate affairs

US-Bangla Airlines' headquarters are in the Baridhara Diplomatic Zone in Dhaka. Though the airline is the flagship company of the parent US-Bangla Group, the group owns numerous businesses in other industries such as real estate, education, media, electronics, and consumer foods.

Though US-Bangla Airlines is the flagship company of the conglomerate, it is arguably one of the fastest rising conglomerates in Bangladesh. It rebranded its current name from US-Bangla Assets in 2009. Its other notable business is real estate company US-Bangla asset which is developing Purbachal American City, one of the largest commercial and residential real estate projects in Bangladesh. The group now owns educational businesses such as Green University of Bangladesh, one of the earliest private universities of Bangladesh,^[16] and US-Bangla Medical College and Hospital. The group also owns a leather company in Bangladesh, US-Bangla Leather, which has not yet started its production. It also owns US-Bangla Hi-tech Industries which is also yet to set up. It has its footing in media businesses through US-Bangla Media and Communications.^[17]

Destinations

The airline started flights to Dubai–International on 1 February 2021, which is its tenth international destination.^[18]

Country	City	Airport	Notes	Refs
Bangladesh	Barisal	Barisal Airport
	Chittagong	Shah Amanat International Airport
	Cox's Bazar	Cox's Bazar Airport
	Dhaka	Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport
	Jessore	Jessore Airport
	Rajshahi	Shah Makhdum Airport
	Saidpur	Saidpur Airport
	Sylhet	Osmani International Airport
China	Guangzhou	Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport
India	Chennai	Chennai International Airport
	Kolkata	Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport
Malaysia	Kuala Lumpur	Kuala Lumpur International Airport
Maldives	Malé	Velana International Airport
Nepal	Kathmandu	Tribhuvan International Airport		^[19]
Oman	Muscat	Muscat International Airport
Qatar	Doha	Hamad International Airport
Saudi Arabia	Jeddah	King Abdulaziz International Airport
Singapore	Singapore	Changi Airport
Thailand	Bangkok	Suvarnabhumi Airport
United Arab Emirates	Abu Dhabi	Zayed International Airport
	Dubai	Dubai International Airport
	Sharjah	Sharjah International Airport

Fleet

Current fleet

As of April 2024, the US-Bangla Airlines fleet consists of the following aircraft:^[20]

US-Bangla Airlines fleet

Aircraft	In service	Orders	Passengers			Notes / references
					Total
Airbus A321LR	-	8	TBA			^[21]
Airbus A330-300	2	-	-	436	436	Leased until 2029.^[22] ^[23] ^[24]
ATR 72-600	10	-	-	72	72	^[25]
				78	78
Boeing 737-800	6	-	-	189	189	^[26] ^[27] ^[28] ^[29]
Total	18	8

Former fleet

Accidents and incidents

• On 12 March 2018, US-Bangla Airlines Flight 211, a Bombardier Dash 8 Q400-402 with registration S2-AGU, crashed while landing at Tribhuvan International Airport, killing 51 of the 71 people on board.^{[31] [32]} The final accident report, published on 27 January 2019, concluded that "the probable cause of the accident is due to disorientation and a complete loss of situational awareness in the part of a crewmember".^{[33] [34]}
• On 26 September 2018, US-Bangla Airlines Flight 141, a Boeing 737-800 with registration S2-AJA, took off from Dhaka airport at 11:30 am with 164 passengers and seven crew members on board. It was scheduled to land at the Cox's Bazar Airport at 12:30 pm. On approach to Cox's Bazar, the nose-wheel mechanism jammed and prevented the wheel hatch from opening. The pilot then put the Boeing 737-800 into a holding pattern over Chittagong to burn off fuel so that it would be lighter and the risk of fire on impact would be reduced. The plane eventually touched down at 1:18 pm. Some passengers received minor injuries as they attempted to disembark the aircraft hurriedly. This incident was very similar to JetBlue Flight 292.^[35]

See also

• List of airlines of Bangladesh
• List of companies of Bangladesh
• Transport in Bangladesh
• Biman Bangladesh Airlines

Notes and References

1. Web site: US-Bangla Airlines Fleet Details and History . planespotters.net.
2. Web site: Contact Us . US-Bangla Airlines . 1 February 2014.
3. News: US-Bangla airlines adds its 10th aircraft . . Dhaka . 2019-10-20.
4. Web site: About Us . US-Bangla Group . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20160606204810/http://www.us-bangla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=46&Itemid=27 . 2016-06-06.
5. News: US-Bangla Airlines takes to the skies . . 17 July 2014 . 15 August 2014.
6. News: US-Bangla launched Dhaka-Saidpur flights from Oct 2 . . 27 September 2014 . 27 September 2014.
7. News: US-Bangla to procure 4 aircraft . . Dhaka . . 17 July 2018.
8. News: https://www.prothomalo.com/economy/article/1476886/ . bn:দেশের প্রথম কোনো সংস্থা হিসেবে ইউএস-বাংলা চীনে যাচ্ছে . . bn . 20 March 2019.
9. News: US-Bangla Airlines offers Dhaka-Chennai direct flight . . 2019-03-20.
10. News: https://www.prothomalo.com/economy/article/1616296/ . bn:ইউএস-বাংলায় যুক্ত হলো দশম এয়ারক্রাফট . . bn . 20 October 2019.
11. News: 11 February 2020. US-Bangla eyeing to make Sylhet more accessible. en. The Daily Star. 25 February 2020.
12. News: US Bangla set to add flights to 4 new int'l destinations . 7 January 2021 . . 23 February 2020.
13. News: Bangladesh - US-Bangla to launch flights on seven new int'l routes in 2022 . 18 November 2021 . menafn.com.
14. News: US-Bangla adds Airbus A330-300, another Boeing 737-800 to its fleet . 10 February 2024 . The Business Standard. 9 February 2024 . en.
15. Web site: Kaminski-Morrow2024-02-09T15:01:00+00:00 . David . US-Bangla prepares for long-haul expansion as first A330 arrives . 2024-02-10 . . en.
16. News: Green University inks MoU with US-Bangla group . . 4 November 2017 . 3 January 2022 .
17. News: US-Bangla Group gets dubious rise by dodging huge revenue and hampering economic growth of the country . . 30 January 2021 . 3 January 2022 .
18. News: US-Bangla airlines spread wings to Dubai . 4 February 2021 . US-Bangla airlines spread wings to Dubai theindependentbd.com . The Independent.
19. News: US-Bangla Airlines suspends flights to Kathmandu after Nepal crash kills 51 . 10 February 2024 . Hindustan Times . 15 March 2018 . en.
20. News: Ibne Kamal . Md Ashequl Morsalin . US-Bangla's fleet expands to 14 . 28 March 2021 . . en.
21. Web site: US-Bangla Airlines dusts off longhaul plans, eyes A321(LR)s.
22. Web site: US-Bangla Airlines to add A330s in late 2Q22 . Airsoc.
23. Web site: Bangladesh's US-Bangla Airlines to take two A330s in 2Q23 . Ch-Aviation . 11 January 2023.
24. News: 2024-02-09 . US-Bangla adds Airbus A330-300, another Boeing 737-800 to its fleet . 2024-02-10 . The Business Standard . en.
25. News: US-Bangla Airlines ads 13th aircraft to its fleet . UNB . 23 January 2020.
26. News: US-Bangla Airlines to begin Dhaka-Colombo flights from January . 19 November 2021 . Dhaka Tribune . 2 November 2021.
27. News: bn:ইউএস–বাংলার বহরে যুক্ত হলো অষ্টম বোয়িং উড়োজাহাজ . Eighth Boeing aircraft joined the US-Bangla fleet . https://www.prothomalo.com/bangladesh/if1vbzgrm4 . 2023-02-08 . . bn.
28. Web site: Boeing 737-800 fleet details . US-Bangla Airlines.
29. News: 2024-02-09 . US-Bangla adds Airbus A330-300, another Boeing 737-800 to its fleet . 2024-03-24 . The Business Standard . en.
30. Web site: Dash 8Q fleet details . US-Bangla Airlines.
31. News: Nepal air crash: 49 dead as plane veers off Kathmandu runway . BBC News . 12 March 2018 . 12 March 2018.
32. News: Death toll in Nepal plane crash rises to 51, Bangladeshi experts join probe . . 13 March 2018 . 14 March 2018 .
33. Web site: Final Report on The Aircraft Accident Investigation of US Bangla Airlines, Bombardier (UBG-211), DHC-8-402, S2-AGU, at Tribhuvan International Airport, Kathmandu, Nepal on 12 March 2018 . 27 January 2019 . Aircraft Accident Investigation Commission 2018 . 19 April 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190129064058/http://tourism.gov.np//files/publication_files/284.pdf . 29 January 2019 . dead .
34. Web site: Accident: US-Bangla DH8D at Kathmandu on Mar 12th 2018, landed across the runway and fell down slope . The Aviation Herald.
35. Web site: Ranter. Harro. ASN Aircraft accident Boeing 737-8Q8 (WL) S2-AJA Chittagong-Shah Amanat International Airport (CGP). 2021-05-19. aviation-safety.net. Aviation Safety Network.