General Atomics Completes Upkeep for Bangladesh Navy’s Dornier 228 Aircraft
General Atomics AeroTec Systems (GA-ATS) has completed a comprehensive upgrade for a Dornier 228 (Do228) short takeoff and landing aircraft for the Bangladesh Navy.
The project is part of a maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) framework signed in 2025 for two platforms, which have been commissioned for more than a decade.
The planes are used by Dhaka for maritime patrol and special missions alongside two more Do228s.
GA-ATS said the Do228 received MRO services at its facility in Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany, and has now been transferred back to the South Asian navy in Chattogram.
Work for the second aircraft will be facilitated later this year.
The overall initiative incorporates a 72-month full-cycle inspection and a 12-year item inspection, sustaining the systems’ operability for future deployments.
This work will be supported by a local Bangladeshi workforce, which underwent skills transfer at GA-ATS’ German center during the initial MRO.
The Dornier 228 Aircraft
The Do228 was conceptualized in the 1970s to provide international customers with a modern long-range utility aircraft with expanded capacity.
It is 17 meters long, seats 19 passengers, has a wingspan of 17 meters, and a fuel load of up to 1,885 kilograms (4,156 pounds).
The plane is equipped with a five-blade propeller and two Honeywell TPE331-10 turboprops with an output of over 770 horsepower each.
The aircraft has a range of 214 nautical miles (246 miles/396 kilometers), a maximum speed of 233 knots (268 miles/432 kilometers per hour), an operational altitude of 25,000 feet (7,620 meters), and an endurance of 10 hours.
In early 2026, GA-ATS launched a predecessor of the Do22, built with advanced sensors, electronic flight displays, digital cockpit solutions, and improved hull architecture and cabin features, enabling greater flexibility between personnel and cargo logistics, paratrooper deployment, medical evacuation, aerial monitoring, and medical evacuation tasks.
