US-Bangla's upcoming Aviation Academy to address industry-wide skills gap

Dhaka : US-Bangla Airlines has completed 12 years of operations, growing from two aircraft to a fleet of 25. Now, as it prepares to add 21 more aircraft by the end of 2027, the airline's next challenge is not fleet size - it is building the workforce to fly and maintain it.

Kamrul Islam, General Manager of Public Relations at US-Bangla Airlines, said this while talking to The Bangladesh Monitor about the airline's upcoming Aviation Academy at his office in the capital recently.

Fleet expansion outpaces training capacity

Kamrul Islam

Kamrul added US-Bangla currently flies to 14 international destinations across 10 countries, in addition to its domestic network. In July, the airline announced plans to add 21 more aircraft, including 15 Boeing 737-8 and six 737-800 jets, by December 2027.

The growth will require a steady pipeline of pilots and aircraft maintenance engineers, he said, professionals who cannot be trained overnight due to strict regulatory and certification requirements.

The core problem, according to Kamrul, is that Bangladesh's aviation industry has expanded faster than its training infrastructure. The country still does not have a comprehensive aviation academy, despite 55 years of independence.

Broader mandate than pilots, engineers

To address the gap, US-Bangla is planning a full-scale Aviation Academy covering not just pilots and engineers but also cabin crew, customer service, security, catering, sales, reservations, and ground operations.

Specialized functions such as revenue management, revenue accounting, engineering stores, and branding and public relations would fall under the academy's scope as well, Kamrul said, alongside training for aircraft cleaning staff.

He mentioned the academy's location remains under discussion. Dhaka is attractive for accessibility, but Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport is already congested, so flight-training infrastructure may need government support to materialize.

Cadet programs already underway

Over the past three years, US-Bangla has sent 28 cadet pilots to the United States for ATPL and CPL training; all have returned and joined the airline as first officers, Kamrul said.

Separately, 18 aircraft maintenance engineers were sent to Thakur Institute of Aviation Technology in India, with 12 already back at work and the remaining six expected to return soon.

He noted the airline now plans to recruit around 200 cadet pilots and 100 maintenance engineers, continuing to train some abroad while building domestic capacity through the planned academy.

Foreign currency, wider economic case

Training locally would reduce the outflow of foreign currency currently spent sending staff abroad, Kamrul said. Conversely, Bangladeshi professionals trained to international standards could work for foreign carriers, generating remittance-like earnings.

He compared the potential to Bangladesh's migrant workforce, roughly 15 million strong, and argued that aviation and tourism, which together contribute about three percent to GDP, could reach six to seven percent with a skilled workforce, matching India's contribution and approaching Sri Lanka's near nine percent.

Toward aviation group

Kamrul expressed US-Bangla's ambitions extend beyond a single airline to an "Aviation Group," combining its existing full-service model with a possible low-cost-carrier offering for price-sensitive leisure travelers.

The group would also expand into maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) services, with potential hubs in Sylhet and Chattogram, alongside cold-chain infrastructure to support cargo and transshipment near airports.

Catering and ground-handling services could be extended to some of the roughly 35 foreign airlines operating in Bangladesh, he added, creating new revenue streams as the Third Terminal at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport comes online.

No fixed timeline, strong youth interest

Kamrul declined to give a launch date for the academy, saying only that US-Bangla wants to move forward as early as possible given its fleet and route expansion plans.

He claimed growing interest among Bangladesh's Generation Z in aviation careers and said the academy aims to offer a structured path from selection and training to certification and employment.

Kamrul concluded the airline hopes the government will provide policy and regulatory support as the project develops, calling it a venture that would benefit not just US-Bangla but Bangladesh's wider aviation industry.