Low-cost carrier Flyadeal has begun fresh operations on the air route from Dhaka to Saudi Arabia's Jeddah.

Attending an inaugural event for the airline's new route, Sheikh Bashir Uddin, the advisor to the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism, expressed frustration over the "criminality" in the sector.

He questioned how the fares of low-cost airlines could end up being higher than those of conventional airlines, highlighting the need to investigate where this additional money goes.

Flyadeal, a subsidiary of the Saudi state-owned flag carrier Saudia, is essentially a budget airline or a low-cost carrier. It started transporting passengers on the Dhaka-Jeddah route on Wednesday and has expressed interest in adding more routes soon.

Advisor Bashir comments came while attending the inauguration ceremony of the airline at a Dhaka hotel on Tuesday night.

Questioning how the cost of a low-cost airline could exceed that of a conventional airline, the advisor said: "I know Flyadeal is a low-cost airline. But regrettably, in Bangladesh, the cost of low-cost airlines is higher than that of legacy airlines. This is a disturbing realisation to me."

In addition to serving as an advisor to the commerce ministry and the Ministry of Textiles and Jute, Bashir was appointed as the civil aviation advisor last April. He also serves as the chairman of the national flag carrier Biman.

Stating that this was the first time he was participating in an event of the civil aviation sector as an advisor, Bashir said he would try to understand the issues of price hikes by speaking with Flyadeal’s top officials.

The advisor said, "I will try to understand why low-cost airlines are more expensive than or equal in prices to legacy airlines. Because low-cost airlines do not even give a glass of water on the flight; you have to pay for it on the flight.

“So, why are you not competitive when you are taking such money? Who is collecting this money? I want to follow the trail of this money and resolve the issue."

Referring to the "criminality" within the country's airline sector, the advisor said: "About 13 million passengers travel through our airport. But the capacity is only eight million. We have a new terminal ready. We want more airlines to join us and, if possible, increase their frequency. And we want to eliminate the criminal tendency in this sector. I apologise for using this word.

"When I took on this responsibility for civil aviation, and saw the criminality around it, it greatly saddened me. I know that many people do not like me for all the changes I am trying to bring... but no objective will be fulfilled by unnecessary accusations."

He noted that he was willing to go to any length to restore fairness in the sector.

The advisor spoke emotionally about migrant workers who are unable to return home for long periods due to financial constraints and high airfares.

Many leave their families for years, travel on loans, and often spend several years repaying the debts incurred to finance their migration, he said. High ticket prices mean they cannot afford to return home to their families, which he described as heartbreaking.

He urged the airlines to make fares affordable, even by increasing flight frequencies where necessary, and said the public deserved fairness.

Flyadeal’s Jeddah–Dhaka flight (F-39112) will depart every Wednesday at 1:30am local time, while the return flight (F-39113) will leave Dhaka at 1pm. Besides migrant workers, the airline is also targeting Hajj and Umrah pilgrims on this route.

Despite being a low-cost carrier, Flyadeal has announced that it will offer complimentary in-flight meals and additional baggage allowance on this route.