Days after Bangladeshi security agencies cracked down on a large module of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan within the ranks of the Bangladesh Air Force (BAF), the first-ever Air Staff Talk between Dhaka and Islamabad began in Dhaka on May 10.
Official documents accessed by Northeast News show that a five-member team of Pakistan Air Force (PAF) officers led by Air Vice Marshal Aurangzeb Ahmed arrived in the Bangladesh capital on May 10 for a five-day visit.
The other PAF officers accompanying AVM Ahmed are Air Commodores Shah Khalid and Abdul Ghafoor Buzdar, Group Captain Mohammad Ali Khan and Wing Commander Hassan Tariq Aziz.
AVM Ahmed was the public face in Pakistan after India launched Operation Sindoor in May 2025. On May 7 this year, he was honoured at a special ceremony held at Air Headquarters in Islamabad to mark the first anniversary of "Marka-e-Haq" (Day of the Battle of Truth).
During the event, PAF officers highlighted his key role in the coordinated and effective use of air power, particularly in mission planning and force allocation.
AVM Ahmed is the Director General Public Relations of the Pakistan Air Force, Deputy Chief of Air Staff (Ops), and Commander, Air Force Strategic Command. The PAF delegation arrived at Dhaka's Hazrat Shah Jalal International Airport via Doha on Qatar Airways flight QR-638.
The discussions are likely to be held at the BAF Headquarters and other relevant military installations.
Two weeks ago, sweeping raids and investigations across Bangladesh, especially at three BAF airbases and installations, led to the arrest of at least two squadron leaders and several non-commissioned officers for their alleged involvement with the TTP. Many other BAF NCOs were detained.
While the BAF made no official statement on the raids and subsequent investigations, it is learnt that Court Martial proceedings have begun against the arrested officers and NCOs.
The punitive action against the suspect BAF personnel notwithstanding, there have been visits by Bangladeshi bureaucrats to Islamabad for training purposes, while Pakistani officials arrived in Dhaka on pre-arranged visits.
The Indian defence establishment will keenly observe the PAF team's visit to take part in the first-ever bilateral staff-level meeting titled "1st Air Staff Talk (AST)". The deliberations between the BAF and PAF are aimed at enhancing cooperation between the two air forces, exchanging experiences, and strengthening bilateral military relations.
Bangladeshi defence sources said their overall assessment suggests that, in continuation of the growing military and strategic engagements between Bangladesh and Pakistan in recent times, initiatives will now be taken to expand formal cooperation at the air force level as well, which may indicate further activation of bilateral defence relations in the future.
Staff-level deliberations have previously been held between the Pakistan and Bangladesh armies and the navies.
The PAF delegation's Dhaka visit assumes significance, especially in the light of the BAF's infrastructural expansions at the Lalmonirhat and Bogura airbases. While construction of a new hangar at the Lalmonirhat airbase, about 20 kms from the India-Bangladesh border, was completed late last year, a modern air defence and radar system is being installed at the same facility.
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Besides, the runway at the strategic Bogura airbase is in the process of being extended. Last week, BAF Air Marshal Hasan Mahmood Khan publicly revealed the strategic importance of the Bogura airbase, where the runway is being extended to 3.2 kms.
The BAF also plans to establish a flying academy and a facility where fighter pilots will undergo intensive training. There are also plans to build infrastructure to station new fighter jets and construct a drone production facility.