Biman, Gulf Air sign codeshare agreement

Biman Bangladesh Airlines and Gulf Air launched a codeshare arrangement on Wednesday, allowing both the airlines to sale different seats of the same flight to their respective passengers.

The partnership aims to enhance travel connectivity, convenience, and accessibility for passengers traveling between Bangladesh and the Gulf region, read a press release of Biman.

Under a codeshare agreement, two or more airlines can share the same flight, selling different seats of the flight to their respective passengers using their own flight numbers. The flights are operated by a single partner airline also known as the operating carrier. The operating carrier can also sell seats of another flight managed by any other airline in the agreement.

The codeshare deal was signed virtually at Biman's headquarters in the capital on Wednesday.

With this agreement, Biman and Gulf Air will collaborate closely to expand their flight networks, read the release.  

"The codeshare agreement will enable travellers to seamlessly book flights operated by either of the airlines, providing increased flexibility and efficiency in travel planning. Initially under this agreement, passengers can travel on both the airlines from Dhaka to Bahrain and Bahrain to Dhaka with onward connecting flights to Chattogram and Sylhet," it added.

However, passengers will have to keep on person the boarding card of Biman while travelling on Gulf Air-operated flights. In the same way, Gulf Air passengers will have to keep the boarding card of the Mideast airline during their travel on Biman. 

At the signing ceremony, Biman Bangladesh CEO Shafiul Azim said, "We are thrilled to join hands with Gulf Air in this codeshare agreement, which marks a significant milestone for both airlines. This partnership will unlock new possibilities for our customers and strengthen the bonds between Bangladesh and the Gulf countries."

Earlier in May, Shafiul told TBS that as a result of code sharing, Biman will get indirect passage to more destinations in Europe through Gulf Air.

The two airlines will share the profits earned from operating flights on routes under the codeshare agreement, he said.

Stating that this is a unique moment for the aviation sector in Bangladesh, he said this is the first time Biman is entering into a codeshare agreement.

"This is also a kind of indirect fleet expansion," he added.

At the signing event, Gulf Air CEO Captain Waleed Al Alawi said, "We are delighted to be partnering with Biman Bangladesh Airlines, a respected carrier in the South Asian region. Through this codeshare agreement, we are looking forward to offering our passengers an expanded network of destinations and more travel choices."