Jashore flight resumes from Thursday

The Civil Aviation Authority, Bangladesh (CAAB) on Tuesday decided to resume the flight operation on Dhaka-Jashore-Dhaka route from Thursday as the fourth domestic destination after reopening air routes to Chattogram, Sylhet and Saidpur.

“We have decided to resume the flight on Jashore route from Thursday as the district civil surgeon office has agreed to assign physicians and health workers at the airport there,” CAAB chairman air vice-marshal Md Mafidur Rahman told the news agency.

On 1 June, the government resumed the air connectivity on the three internal routes from and to the capital after more than two months closure amid COVID-19 pandemic. CAAB resumes air connectivity following the guidelines ensuring health hygiene as well as maintaining social distancing.

Earlier, CAAB didn’t give permission to operate domestic flights to other four out of the country’s seven domestic routes – Jashore, Rajshahi, Cox’s Bazar and Barishal - as airports in those destinations were not prepared to follow the CAAB’s prescribed health guideline.

“As long as local health departments fail to assign physicians and health workers at the rest three airports, we will not resume flights there,” Rahman said.

Two private carriers, US-Bangla Airlines and Novoair have already taken preparation to operate four flights on Dhaka-Jashore-Dhaka route daily from Thursday, airlines officials said.

However, the national flag carrier Biman Bangladesh Airlines has extended its flight suspension on domestic routes till 11 June after operating only one flight on the first day of flight resumption in 1 June due to lack of passengers.

According to CAAB the guideline, airlines are operating flight keeping at least 30 per cent seats vacant on each flight to ensure social distancing by keeping at least a gap of a seat between two passengers if they are not from the same family.