Alaska Airlines (AS, Seattle Tacoma International) Alaska Air Group has firmed fifty-two B737 MAX options with Boeing (BOE, Washington National) with deliveries to Alaska Airlines (AS, Seattle Tacoma International) scheduled between 2024 and 2027.
Alaska Air Group said the order includes B737-8, B737-9, and B737-10 types, although it did not disclose the exact split, and that it has "full flexibility" in terms of type interchangeability. The holding also secured a further 105 purchase rights for aircraft with deliveries through 2030.
The new order increases the holding's MAX order book from 94 to 146. The carrier indicated in March it would firm the options, when it announced a "recalibration" of its B737 MAX plans. It is the biggest single order ever placed by Alaska Air Group which said that it now has a "line of sight" to potentially operate over 250 B737 MAX, but as many of these commitments are tentative, it has also retained flexibility to adapt to the market environment.
The ch-aviation fleets module shows that the Seattle-based carrier currently operates thirty-five B737-9s with plans to take a further 43 through the end of 2023. These deliveries will allow the airline to complete the retirement of its Airbus fleet inherited after the takeover of Virgin America, which currently includes thirty-five A320-200s and ten A321-200Ns. Alaska Airlines also operates eleven B737-700s, sixty-one B737-800s, twelve B737-900s, and seventy-nine B737-900ERs, as well as two B737-700(BDSF)s.
