Biman Bangladesh Massively Modernizes Fleet, With 14 New Boeing Planes

Biman Bangladesh Airlines, the national carrier of Bangladesh, has just placed its biggest aircraft order in history, and it represents a major fleet modernization for the airline.

Biman Bangladesh picks up 787s & 737 MAXs

Biman Bangladesh has placed a firm order for 14 new Boeing aircraft, including for eight Boeing 787-10s, two Boeing 787-9s, and four Boeing 737 MAX 8s:

• The Boeing 787-10s are being ordered for the first time, and will be used to serve high demand flights to the Middle East
• The Boeing 787-9s complement the existing 787-9s, and will be used to support long haul service to Europe and North America
• The Boeing 737 MAX 8s are being ordered for the first time, and will be used to connect Bangladesh to destinations across the Middle East, India, and Southeast Asia

We’re going to have to be patient with this order, though, since deliveries are expected between November 2031 and October 2035, so that is quite the wait (and that’s best case scenario, and we know Boeing isn’t great at delivering planes on time).

Here’s how Biman Bangladesh CEO Kaizer Sohel Ahmed describes this order:

“The new fuel-efficient, technologically advanced aircraft will modernize Biman’s fleet, sharpen operational performance, and extend its international route network — strengthening Bangladesh’s position in the global aviation market.”

How does this order fit into Biman Bangladesh’s fleet?

For context on Biman Bangladesh’s fleet, the airline currently has 19 aircraft, including four Boeing 737-800s, four Boeing 777-300ERs, six Boeing 787s (four 787-8s and two 787-9s), and five De Havilland Dash 8s. These newly ordered planes obviously don’t replace the turboprops, so it’s pretty wild to see a non-startup airline with 14 jets ordering 14 more jets.

As I understand it, here’s what’s going on:

• The four new 737 MAX 8s will replace the four 737-800s, so that’s a direct replacement, with improved fuel efficiency
• The eight 787-10s will replace the four 777-300ERs, so that represents a big capacity boost, and the 787-10 also has the best per-seat economics of any plane, so that’s great
• The two 787-9s will be used for incremental growth in long haul markets

In other words, once this fleet renewal is complete, the carrier’s jet fleet should consist of four 737 MAX 8s, four 787-8s, four 787-9s, and eight 787-10s. If anything, what stands out here is how a vast majority of the fleet will consist of wide body aircraft, which you don’t often see in that way.

But I understand the logic. Biman Bangladesh often operates in high volume point-to-point markets, like between Bangladesh and points in the Middle East, so there’s need for the capacity.

The only thing that’s perhaps surprising here is that in June 2023, Biman Bangladesh revealed it intended to order 10 Airbus A350 aircraft for its long haul fleet renewal. That order was never finalized, though, and clearly the airline ultimately decided to stick to its all-Boeing jet fleet.

Bottom line

Biman Bangladesh Airlines has placed a big aircraft order with Boeing, for 14 planes. This includes four 737 MAX 8s, two 787-9s, and eight 787-10s, which will be delivered between late 2031 and late 2035. The 737 MAX 8s will directly replace 737-800s, the 787-9s will be used for incremental long haul growth, and the 787-10s will be used to replace 777-300ERs, while also doubling that part of the fleet.

I look forward to seeing the onboard product on these new planes, though we’ll have to wait over five years for the first plane to be delivered.

What do you make of Biman Bangladesh’s Boeing order?