Ottawa, Ont.
Today, the Canadian Commercial Corporation announced it has signed a contract with Biman Bangladesh Airlines Ltd., Bangladesh’s national commercial carrier, for the purchase of three new Bombardier Q400 turboprop aircraft. Providing Bangladesh’s national carrier with Q400 aircraft will allow Biman to increase its domestic connectivity and offer high frequency services within Bangladesh and neighboring countries. In addition, these aircraft will help Bangladesh increase trade through regional and economic cooperation with South Asia to take advantage of a larger, diverse market and resources.In addition, the contract demonstrates CCC’s support for Canada’s Aerospace sector as part of its diversification initiative. Aerospace remains one of Canada’s most important manufacturing sectors, creating high-quality jobs, technologies and global trading relationships that are essential to our nation’s future prosperity and growth.
Quick Facts
- The sale supports Canadian jobs as the aircraft will be constructed at a Bombardier Commercial Aircraft facility in Toronto, Ontario.
- Biman Bangladesh Airlines Ltd. provides international passenger and cargo services to Asia and Europe, as well as major domestic routes inside Bangladesh. It has air service agreements with 42 countries and currently flies to 16 different countries.
- Canada’s commercial relationship with Bangladesh has grown dramatically over the last 10 years. The value of bilateral merchandise trade with Bangladesh has more than doubled from just under $950 million in 2008 to nearly $2.4 billion in 2017.
- Bangladesh is the second largest source of Canadian merchandise imports from South Asia, after India.
- In 2017-18, the Canadian Commercial Corporation was active in 78 countries around the world, working with 182 Canadian companies, to sign export contracts worth over $1.3 billion.
Quotes
“We are extremely pleased to be supporting Bombardier in selling their Q400 aircraft to Biman Bangladesh Airlines Ltd. Canada and Bangladesh enjoy strong bi-lateral ties through trade and investment, development cooperation, and people-to-people links. Increasing the capacity of the national carrier supports these efforts and the economic growth of the country, improving the lives of Bangladeshis by increasing their access to domestic and international destinations.”-Ian McLeod, Vice-President of Business Development and Sales, Canadian Commercial Corporation
“We are very pleased that Biman is expanding its Q400 fleet with this order for three new aircraft. The Q400’s greater seating and cargo capacity really set it apart from the competition. Furthermore, the Q400’s mix of turboprop economics and jet like performance was the best match for Biman’s mix of short and long-range routes. Operators coming back for more Q400 aircraft really validates the benefits of the aircraft’s unique characteristics.”-François Cognard, VP, Sales, Asia Pacific, Bombardier Aerospace
“We are very excited about adding these Q400s to our fleet. We currently operate two Q400s and without hesitation, we can say that these aircraft are ideal for our regional operations. With its outstanding economics, comfort and operational flexibility, the Q400 will allow us to increase our domestic connectivity and to also offer high frequency services within Bangladesh and neighboring countries.”-Mr. A M Mosaddique Ahmed, Managing Director & CEO, Biman Bangladesh Airlines
