Biman defers flight from London by a day as Zillur could not fly
As many as 340 Biman passengers, scheduled to fly today from London to Dhaka, are facing a delay of about 24 hours because their flight has a seat reserved for President Zillur Rahman and he is unable to make it before tomorrow.
Now all the passengers will have to fly tomorrow with the president, top Biman officials in Dhaka and London say. The flight has been rescheduled after Bangabhaban officials had informed the Biman office that the president will not come today.
The Daily Star could not know why Zillur Rahman cancelled his trip today.
Contacted, AR Chisty, country manager of Biman’s UK and Ireland office, said, “The honourable president was supposed to fly to Dhaka on BG-006 flight at 17:45 [London time].
“Another 340 homebound passengers have booked the flight.”
“But the flight has been delayed for 24 hours due to aircraft constraint,” he told The Daily Star over the telephone, adding that they have informed all the passengers about the delay. “Even we have aired advertisements on a local TV to this effect.”
He said the passengers have been urged to report to the airport Monday.
Top Biman officials in Dhaka also confirmed the news.
The Daily Star came to know about the reschedule as a passenger sent an email that reads, “I am a passenger flying from London to Sylhet this Sunday, December 23. The president is flying with us. The government of Bangladesh decided to cancel our flight because the president decided not to go on Sunday.”
“How can you cancel a flight just for one person while people like me booked our tickets for this holiday seven months ago? This is a disgrace for our country,” said the passenger from his/her iPhone without disclosing identity.
President Zillur Rahman left Dhaka for London last week on a nine-day visit for a medical check-up.
Source: The Daily Star
Most ridiculous news of 2012!