Travel and tour operators fear that Biman Bangladesh Airlines would face passenger shortage and revenue shortfall on newly resumed Dhaka鈥揜ome route in absence of interlining with other airlines.
Interlining is a commercial agreement between individual airlines to handle passengers traveling on itineraries that require multiple flights on multiple airlines. Such agreements allow passengers to change from one flight or airline to another flight or another airline without having to gather their bags or check-in again.
Interlining may help Biman attract passengers, especially Bangladeshis, living in other Italian and European cities, said sector insiders and Biman officials.
They also said that the national flag carrier would also incur loss if it failed to attract foreigners and cargo business.
Biman on March 27 resumed its direct flight targeting about 50,000 Bangladeshis in and around Rome and about 25,000 in Naples with weekly three flights.
Biman began flights to Rome on April 2, 1981, and stopped on April 6, 2015 due to financial loss.聽 It used to operate the Dhaka鈥揜ome flight with a stopover at Dubai for refuelling, which was both costly and time-consuming.
According to the Italian government, about 1.58 lakh Bangladeshis currently lived in the European country. The actual number is, however, nearly double, said Bangladesh officials in Rome.
According to the Bangladeshi officials, more than over 35,000 Bangladeshis live in another major Italian city Milan.
Apart from Rome, most of the Middle Eastern airlines operate daily flights from major cities in Italy including Milan, and connect Bangladeshi passengers via transit in their respective countries, tour operators said.
Association of Travel Agents of Bangladesh president Abdus Salam Aref said that connectivity across major Italian and nearby European cities should be made through interlink agreement to generate passenger revenue.
During latest visit by Bangladeshi lawmakers and other senior government and Biman officials in Rome and Venice, Bangladeshi expatriates also called on Bangladeshi authorities to connect Milan and Venice, among other cities, by interlinking to generate passenger revenue.
鈥業nterlinking should be adopted to attract passengers from Paris, Germany among others,鈥� said Aref, also the Air Speed Limited managing director.
Biman would make profit only if it widens its connectivity by interlinking, he added.
Naples-based Balaka Travel and Tours managing director Muhammad Rejaul Islam said that the Dhaka鈥揜ome flight could be viable only if connectivity among other major Italian cities was established by interlink agreements.
Dalim Hossain, a businessman who lives in Naples, said that he along with his family travelled eight hours by a bus before their scheduled Biman flight.
Biman managing director and chief executive officer Shafiul Azim, however, is optimistic about the Dhaka鈥揜ome operation.
He said that they already advanced a deal with Italian airlines Alitalia to connect major Italian cities to ferry passengers to and from Rome for the Dhaka鈥揜ome flight.
Biman director for marketing Mohammad Salauddin said that an interlink agreement between Alitalia and Biman was under process. 鈥榃e are now in the process of technical integration.鈥�
Once finalised, Biman can connect passengers to and from Paris, Zurich and other major European cities, he added.
The national flag carrier started flights thrice a week and its officials said that they intended to increase the flight frequency based on the demand.