Dhaka: European aerospace leader Airbus and British aviation giant Menzies Aviation have expressed strong interest in establishing long-term partnerships with Bangladesh, officials said Tuesday (June 10).

Airbus Executive Vice President Wouter van Wersch and Menzies Aviation Executive Vice President Charles Wyley met consecutively with Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus at his London hotel to discuss potential collaboration opportunities.

“We have identified Bangladesh as a key priority country,” van Wersch told the Chief Adviser, emphasizing Airbus’s eagerness to partner with Bangladesh’s national carrier, Biman Bangladesh Airlines, and to help make it more profitable.

Van Wersch highlighted Airbus’s broad expertise, noting the company manufactures around 800 aircraft annually, in addition to helicopters and fighter jets.

The Chief Adviser responded that while Bangladesh remains open to offers aimed at modernizing the Biman fleet, any decision would require careful and deliberate consideration.

“I am very eager to understand what can be done, what should be done. So, we will listen to you. But don’t expect any decision soon. We have to look at everything in a very fresh way,” he said.

Van Wersch added that if Bangladesh opts to include Airbus aircraft in the Biman fleet, up to 85 percent of the funding could be secured through Export Credit Agency (ECA) financing.

Meanwhile, London-based Menzies Aviation expressed its readiness to compete for ground handling and air cargo contracts at the third terminal of Dhaka’s Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport. The company brings extensive experience, providing services at over 300 airports in at least 65 countries.

“We would like to support Bangladeshi airports as well as your national carrier,” Wyley told the Chief Adviser.

Wyley also proposed making Dhaka a regional training hub for a portion of Menzies’s 65,000 global employees, should the company be awarded ground handling responsibilities.

“We are a proven British company, and we would like to offer our support,” he said.

-B