The road trip from Comilla to Dhaka was uneventful and monotonous. Traveling by car in a country like Bangladesh, where land is scarce, feels very disheartening. We once had a beautiful, river-laden country, and what we needed was a focus on railways and waterways. Instead, we built a car-centric society, catering to an elite few. There is no central land planning commission, so development is chaotic — mansions in the middle of farmland, with no rhyme or reason. These thoughts stayed with me throughout the drive, depressing me.
I reached the airport in about 2.5 hours. The crowd there was staggering, unlike anything I’ve seen elsewhere. The queue began outside the terminal, and some opportunists approached me with offers: “Bhai, age jaben? Long queue” (Brother, do you want to go ahead? The queue is long). It was a thinly veiled request for a bribe. I declined, replying, “Long queue problem nai” (I don’t mind the long queue), and waited my turn.
The entry process was frustrating due to the limited setup—each gate was equipped with just one scanning machine, creating unnecessary bottlenecks and resulting in long lines.
During screening, the officer decided to flex his authority, barking, “Bhai, chaul neya nishedh” (Brother, carrying rice is prohibited). I couldn’t help but find this amusing—since when did rice become a dangerous good? I refused to argue, and simply mentioned it was just a few kilograms for making polao. The officer allowed it but warned me not to bring it next time. Another unnecessary, demoralizing encounter.
Next came the check-in line for Qatar Airways. Here, I was required to fill out a pointless form with details like my name, flight number, and mobile number. These minor but irritating formalities seem exclusive to Bangladesh. Majority didn’t have pens, leaving passengers scrambling to share. It felt like a relic of a colonial mindset—rules for the sake of control, not utility.
Immigration was another time-consuming ordeal. I don’t understand why it takes so long just to stamp a passport.
With about 15 minutes to spare before boarding, I decided to visit the lounge. I noticed that the Muslin Lounge had re-opened, designated for Biman Bangladesh passengers. I went to the Balaka Lounge, which had been renovated and offered a variety of food items: fruits, salad, vegetable curry, beef tehari, paratha, chicken curry, hot dogs, boiled eggs, croissants, pancake, tea, coffee, and cold drinks. I ate a little and finished quickly in about ten minutes.

Boarding, as expected, was accompanied by loud, commanding instructions: “Line dhoren! Line e daran!” (Stand in line!), despite passengers already forming a queue naturally. The tone was unnecessarily harsh, as though as though authority must always be accompanied by an obnoxious and flagrant show of power. There’s no priority boarding for business class in Bangladesh, since the aerobridges lack dual branches, but I didn’t mind blending in with the crowd.

Boarding, as expected, was accompanied by loud, commanding instructions: “Line dhoren! Line e daran!” (Stand in line!), despite passengers already forming a queue naturally. The tone was unnecessarily harsh, as though as though authority must always be accompanied by an obnoxious and flagrant show of power. There’s no priority boarding for business class in Bangladesh, since the aerobridges lack dual branches, but I didn’t mind blending in with the crowd.
Settling into my spacious business class seat (2A), I was greeted with a selection of juices and Arabic qahwa accompanied by dates. I chose mango juice. The amenities included a wide infotainment screen, noise-canceling headphones, a USB charging station, a flatbed seat, a reading light, and a blanket. However, there was no amenity kit.

After a 30-minute wait on the taxiway, we finally took off. Shortly after, the attendants served nuts and took meal orders. I chose seafood as a starter and beef steak for the main course. The meal was fine, but I later wished I had opted for dal soup and chicken with rice instead. The milk tea served afterward was disappointingly watery.


Midway through the flight, I developed a bad headache. Thankfully, the crew promptly provided paracetamol. The onboard toilets were well-stocked with toothbrushes and toothpaste. An hour before landing, they served tea, biscuits, and chocolates, bringing the culinary experience to a pleasant close.


You can see the remaining pictures in the following gallery.













































































Hi there, looks like inadvertently placed the majority of your flight review inside the "Tourism Bonus" section instead of the main section. You update your review in Edit mode to move everything to the correct section. Thanks!
Hi there! I had some free time in my hands, so I moved your photos from the tourism bonus to the main body of the report. However, due to some bug of the website, the tourism bonus section won't let itself be deleted. Anyway, please remember that the information about the flight belongs in the main section, not in the bonus. Also, if you allow me, I'd like to mention that you left some very good photos unused at the end of your report, that could have enriched the introduction greatly.
Anyways, thanks for sharing! 😜