Staff Reporter:
Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) is working to open Hazrat Shahjalal International Air-port’s third terminal on December 16 this year, marking the Victory Day.
“The third terminal of Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport will be opened in phases after completion of a deal with Japan and a test run,” CAAB Chairman Air vice marshal Md. Mostafa Mahmud Siddiq said yesterday.
CAAB chairman said this at a meeting of views exchange with members of Aviation and Tourism Jour-nalists Forum Bangladesh (ATJFB) at the CAAB headquarters here.
He said the proposed agreement with Japan on operation of the third terminal would be done fully pro-tecting Bangladesh’s interests.
“The agreement will be completely fair. We will do whatever is necessary to protect Bangladesh’s inter-ests. So far, we have held nine rounds of negotiations,” he said.
The chairman said both sides had reached consensus on several issues, though some gaps still remained, expressing hope that the agreement could be finalized within next few months.
Replying to a question on the timeframe, he said it would take at least three months to sign the agree-ment after negotiations conclude. A test run of six months to one year would be conducted after signing the deal, he said.
“We hope to make the third terminal operational on a limited scale six months after the test run,” he said.
The CAAB chairman said the government has set December 16 as a target date and work is progressing accordingly.
On long-pending audits by International Civil Aviation Organization, he said the last audit was complet-ed in 2018 while an ICAO team is expected to visit in October this year. The main audit is likely to be held between mid and late 2027, he said.
Regarding security alerts at airports, the chairman said CAAB had received instructions from Police Headquarters to strengthen security measures nationwide.
ATJFB President Tanzim Anwar, General Secretary Baten Biplob and CAAB officials were present.
