Biman Bangladesh Airlines, popularly known as Biman, is the national airline of Bangladesh. The airline's main hub is at Shahjalal International Airport (DAC) in Dhaka and it also operates flights from its secondary hubs at Shah Amanat International Airport (CGP) in Chittagong and Osmani International Airport (ZYL) in Sylhet. BBA provides international passenger and cargo services to its destinations; as of April 2015, it has air service agreements with 42 countries but flies to just 16 of them. The carrier is currently facing stiff competition from a number of domestic Bangladeshi private airlines as well as some international carriers, which offer greater flexibility targeting Bangladesh's air transport sector which is experiencing an 8% annual growth rate, thanks to a large number of tourists and non-resident Bangladeshi travellers. The airline was founded in February 1972 after East Pakistan now officially known as Bangladesh gained independence from West Pakistan, Biman enjoyed an internal monopoly in the aviation industry of Bangladesh until 1996. The airline operated flights to 29 international destinations at its peak, extending from New York City in the west to Tokyo in the east. They now operate passenger services to 18 international destinations in Asia and Europe. It goes to most of the destinations directly or via a stopover. Convenient transfer connections from Dhaka to regional destinations are easily available. Biman Bangladesh Airlines flies to many destinations including London, Kuwait, Dammam, Doha, Riyadh, Jeddah, Muscat, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Kathmandu, Kolkata, Dhaka, Jessore, Rajshah, Sylhet, Saioput, Barisat, Chittagong, Co's Baxar, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Bangkok and Yangon. Biman Bangladesh Airlines has hubs in Chittagong and Sylhet (Osmani International Airport (ZYL) and as well as the regular leisure, business and cargo business, Biman Air's operations are the Hajj flights that it runs to and from Mecca in Saudi Arabia. As of October 2019, Biman served 8 domestic and 15 international destinations across 13 countries in the Middle East, some destinations in South and South East Asia and London in Europe. Biman has been the only Bangladeshi airline allowed by the government to offer flights for pilgrims to King Abdulaziz International Airport (JED) in Jeddah.