Novoair hopeful of securing several leased aircraft this year

After three years of frantic efforts, Novoair, a private airline in Bangladesh, is finally hopeful of securing several leased aircraft this year.

"A Novoair team will visit Dublin, likely on January 15 or January 16. We hope to get leased aircraft at the time," Novoair Managing Director Mofizur Rahman told The Daily Star as the private airline will step into its 14th year of operations tomorrow.

"Since 2023, we have been trying to lease several aircraft to expand our fleet in a bid to expand our operation, including operations in international destinations. But we were unable to do so due to a global shortage of aircraft available for lease," he added.

About the airline's plan to expand routes, Rahman said initially they will operate flights on six international routes, namely Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Sharjah, Muscat, and Dubai.

He said their original business plan was to expand the fleet with Airbus A321 aircraft.

"But due to the unavailability of this type, we revised our plan to add Airbus A320s instead. However, we still have not been able to secure these aircraft for lease," the Novoair MD added.

The airlines also explored leasing aircraft through the ACMI (Aircraft, Crew, Maintenance, and Insurance) model, where one airline leases aircraft with a full crew and maintenance to another airline.

Pointing to the Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh's (CAAB) restrictions on leasing aircraft aged more than 15 years, Rahman said such restrictions have put difficulties for them to get aircraft available to take lease.

Since its inception, Novoair has invested more than $50 million in aircraft acquisition and an additional $10 million in infrastructure and support equipment.

Rahman said Novoair remains committed to investing between $25 million and $30 million in its expansion in the coming years.

"Our business philosophy prioritises on-time flight operations and passenger safety above all else," he added.

Novoair commenced its journey on January 9, 2013 with its inaugural passenger flight on the Dhaka to Chattogram route.

Currently, it operates daily flights from Dhaka to Chattogram, Cox's Bazar, Sylhet, and Saidpur.