Alaska Airlines orders 50 737 Max and NG aircraft

Alaska Airlines has placed a firm order for 20 Boeing 737 MAX 8s, 17 MAX 9s and thirteen 737-900ERs, the Seattle-based airline and Boeing announced today. Worth $5 billion at list prices, the contract covers the largest order in Alaska Airlines’ history and raises the carrier’s firm order count for 737s to 75. The airline also holds options on another 69 737NGs and MAXs, potentially stretching deliveries to 2024.

(Photo Alaska Airlines)

The latest contract extends Alaska’s firm delivery positions to 2022. Its commitments call for delivery of airplanes attached to existing and new orders for 737NGs to start late this month and continue through 2017. It expects delivery of the the first 737 MAX 8 in 2018, followed by the first 737 MAX 9 in 2019. Alaska now flies 120 Boeing 737s and becomes the third U.S. airline to order the MAX.

Alaska said it plans to use two-thirds of its new order to replace older airplanes over the next decade, including nearly all of its 737-400s by the end of 2017. The airline now expects to dispose of six aircraft in the fourth quarter of 2013, ending the year with 127 Boeing aircraft in the mainline fleet.

With this latest order, Boeing has now raised its total sales tally for the MAX family to 858 airplanes.

(Gregory Polek - AINonline News)