The government has ordered five officers of the Bangladesh Air Force into retirement. Their leave preparatory to retirement (LPR) will begin on 30 November, with retirement becoming effective on 1 June 2027.
A gazette notification to this effect was issued on Thursday (12 November) by Deputy Secretary Zakir Hossain of the Ministry of Defence.
The officers are Wing Commander Sanjida Akter, Wing Commander Enamul Kabir, Squadron Leader S.M. Tanjil Ahsan, Squadron Leader Md. Shahriar Chowdhury and Squadron Leader Sanjana Sharmin Chowdhury.
According to the notification, the first two officers, who were on extended-term commissions, are being retired under Rule 24(10) of the Air Force Act Rules, 1957, and Air Force Instruction 1/1997 because their service periods have expired. The remaining three, who were on short-service commissions, are being retired under the same rule and Air Force Instruction 2/2014 for the same reason. All five will receive the retirement benefits prescribed under the rules.
This administrative retirement of mid-ranking Air Force officers comes against a backdrop of significant recent personnel changes, legal actions, and a purchase spree across the armed forces following the fall of the previous Awami League government in August 2024.
In the Army, senior-level reshuffles have continued into 2026. Key appointments earlier this year included Lieutenant General Mainur Rahman as Chief of General Staff, a new Director General of the Directorate General of Forces Intelligence (DGFI), and a new Principal Staff Officer at the Armed Forces Division, with some outgoing senior officers retiring or being moved to diplomatic posts. Broader command and staff adjustments have also taken place across infantry divisions, training institutions and other formations.
Parallel to these shuffles, legal proceedings have targeted a number of serving and former officers. The International Crimes Tribunal has formally charged roughly two dozen current and former Army officers (around 25 in total across related cases) in connection with enforced disappearances, secret detention and torture during the previous regime, as well as killings during the July 2024 uprising. About 15 serving or LPR officers were taken into Army custody following arrest warrants; many have since been produced before the tribunal and sent to jail, with trials ongoing.
This marks the first time so many serving officers have faced trial in a civilian court on such charges.
Separately, several officials and retired officers have been arrested. Former Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal Sheikh Abdul Hannan was detained in Qatar in mid-October 2026 on corruption allegations involving unexplained assets and large bank transactions; Bangladeshi authorities have pursued the case through Interpol. Other retired Army officers have been arrested and remanded in cases involving alleged sedition or anti-state activities.
At the same time, the interim government and its successors have moved to reverse many forced or premature retirements and dismissals from the 2009–August 2024 period. In mid-2026, retrospective promotions, normal retirement status and financial benefits (including arrears) were granted to about 150 former officers of the Army, Navy and Air Force (including 14 from the Air Force) who had faced discrimination or compulsory retirement under the previous administration.
The retirement of the five Air Force officers announced on 12 November appears to follow standard commission-expiry rules rather than the disciplinary or political actions seen in other recent cases.