Bangladesh 51st largest market by passenger departures globally

Dhaka : International air traffic accounted for 70 per cent of total origin-destination (O-D) departures for Bangladesh, equal to 5.8 million passengers. This makes the country the 51st largest market by passenger departures.

The data came forth in the latest report by the global trade body International Air Trasport Association (IATA) on the value of air transport to Bangladesh for the year 2023.

Also, the market has witnessed a staggering cumulative growth of over 74.5 per cent over the last decade in terms of passenger departures, mentioned IATA in its report.

The Middle East is the largest international market for passenger flows from Bangladesh, followed by Asia Pacific and Europe, according to IATA.

Almost 3.0 million passengers departed from Bangladesh to the Middle East (53 per cent of the total), 1.8 million to another country in Asia Pacific (32 per cent of the total), and 600,900 to Europe (10 per cent of the total).

Top 10 most popular destinations from BD

Also, seven of the top 10 most popular city destinations from Bangladesh are in the Middle East including the number one spot which goes to Jeddah with 612,500 passengers (10.6 per cent of the total).

Two Southeast Asian countries make the top 10 list including the first runner-up Kuala Lumpur with 477,400 passengers (8.2 per cent of the total) and the eighth position grabbing Kolkata with 189,800 passengers (3.3 per cent).

However, it may be mentioned here, the data represents departure status from Bangladesh before India suspended visa services for Bangladeshis following the ousting of the former government.

The other seven cities in the list are as follow: Riyadh in third position with 398,500 passengers (6.9 per cent of the total), Dubai fourth with 329,100 passengers (5.7 per cent), Muscat fifth with 300,000 passengers (5.2 per cent), Doha sixth with 285,000 passengers (4.9 per cent), Dammam seventh with 238,100 passengers (4.1 per cent), Sharjah ninth with 174,300 passengers (3.0 per cent), and London tenth with 163,400 passengers (2.6 per cent).    

With this, according to IATA, Bangladesh occupies 0.4 per cent of global international passenger traffic and 1.7 per cent of regional international passenger traffic, measured by O-D international passenger departures.

In its report, IATA considered Bangla-desh having a well-developed aviation network that transforms lives and communities.

"By swiftly and safely connecting people in different cities, air transport generates benefits to consumers and the wider economy. It makes the world smaller, enriching lives and enhancing cultural diversity. In rural and remote areas, air transport provides an essential lifeline for the community, safeguarding access to healthcare, education, and often employment," the report stated.

Connectivity vital to development

Air connectivity is fundamental to unlocking a country's economic growth potential and prosperity; it enables industries across all regions within the country to engage in dynamic business activity. The extent of domestic and international connectivity is an enabler and an accelerator of both the generation and distribution of economic benefits, as per the report.

The report stated Bangladesh has eight airports with commercial scheduled flights, 35 international airports directly connected, 22 countries connected by direct flights, 82 outbound international flights a day, 14 new international routes in the last five years, and 39 operating airlines.

However, it may be mentioned here, many of the aforementioned numbers have increased in 2024, as new routes have emerged and so have higher frequencies as well as new airlines and flights after 2023 till now.

The report also mentioned, since 2014, Bangladesh's international air connectivity index has increased by 16 per cent within the Asia Pacific region and by 119 per cent with all other regions.

Understanding the nature of that connectivity is also important. For Bangla-desh, 1 per cent of all passengers arriving internationally continued their journey on a domestic connection.

98 per cent of passengers either finished their journey at the point of entry to the country or continued traveling using a different mode of transport.

Only 1 per cent of all passengers arriving in Bangladesh from abroad continued their journey to a destination in another country.

Meaning, most of the traffic to Bangladesh is point to point. There is hardly any onward travel or transit, concluded the report by IATA.