Dollar crunch now pinching Biman pilots

With a prolonged dollar crisis, stemming from the country's dwindling foreign reserves, persisting in Bangladesh, severely affecting the government and businesses, pilots working for the state-owned Biman Bangladesh Airlines have raised concerns about an inadequate supply of the greenbacks, which are essential for their well-being during international stopovers.

The pilots of the national flag carrier allege that they cannot avail the dollars from banks and moneychangers according to their demands. 

In a letter dated 14 September, Biman Managing Director Shafiul Azim informed Finance Secretary Md Khairuzzaman Mozumder that in recent times, the pilots have not been receiving dollars from authorised dealer banks or moneychangers. "As a result, the pilots are unable to collect sufficient dollars to cover their daily expenses while staying abroad during flight operations. This has led to significant disruptions in flight management," he mentioned.

An official of the finance ministry told The Business Standard that the matter of supplying dollars to banks and moneychangers falls under the jurisdiction of the central bank. Therefore, the Biman authorities have been advised to communicate with the Bangladesh Bank regarding this issue, he added.

The Biman MD told TBS that the central bank has previously issued directives to authorised dealer banks and moneychangers regarding the supply of necessary greenbacks to the Biman pilots. But, in recent times, banks and moneychangers have been voicing their constraints in supplying the dollars based on demand, he said.

Shafiul Azim, however, mentioned that the Biman authorities, as a stopgap arrangement, are now arranging the necessary dollars for the pilots through the airline's own management.

In August 2017, the Bangladesh Bank issued a circular to facilitate the supply of necessary foreign currency for the pilots and cabin crew of Biman. The circular stated that banks should provide the required amount of dollars to Biman each month, subject to the airline's approval, to meet the needs of their crew members.

The managing director of a private bank, who preferred not to disclose his name, told TBS that official exchange rates are not being adhered to in practical transactions because banks are unable to purchase cash dollars at these rates. As the Biman pilots are not willing to provide more than the central bank's declared exchange rate, banks or moneychangers cannot but express their limitations in supplying the dollars, he said.

"There is currently a severe shortage of cash dollars available in the market. Everyone is aware of the current dollar market conditions. In such a situation, if someone wants to buy dollars at a lower rate, it may not be possible to obtain them," the senior banker noted.

Currently, Biman operates 21 aircraft. To operate these aircraft, it has 165 cockpit crew members. In addition, there are some operational pilots, contract-based pilots, including 17 involved in operating Dash-8 aircraft on domestic routes. Biman conducts flights to 20 destinations in 16 countries worldwide.

For official duties abroad, each Biman pilot receives a monthly allowance of $2700, which covers expenses such as hotel accommodation, meals, and medical check-ups, if necessary.

According to Biman officials, cabin crew members, like the pilots, are also facing similar difficulties in not being able to avail sufficient dollars.