Boeing 737-9 MAX
An updated version of the world’s most-flown aircraft, the Boeing 737-9 MAX features new fuel-efficient engines, which allow us to fly further and quieter––all while reducing carbon emissions. The 737-9 MAX Series is Boeing’s newest family of single-aisle airplanes. Equipped with 178 of our newly designed leather Recaro seats, our 737-9 MAX will feature Boeing’s award-winning Sky Interior, which gives the cabin a spacious feeling along with ambient mood lighting. Also on board: redesigned First Class seats with footrests, new cup holders in First and Premium Class, ergonomically-designed tablet holders, and a shelf designed to hold most tablets and smartphones in every seat. The aircraft will also include power outlets for charging laptops and smartphones, inflight internet service, and Entretenimiento durante el vuelo.
Inflight Wi-Fi: Please be aware that our 737-9 MAX fleet will not be delivered with Wi-Fi. We're in the process of adding Wi-Fi to these airplanes however some will fly without Wi-Fi for a period of time. Inflight movies will be available though. Gracias.
Especificaciones
- Crew: 2 Pilots, 4 Azafatas
- First Class: 16
- Alcance: 3,250 millas náuticas
- Premium Class: 24
- Longitud: 138 pies, 2 plg (42.1 m)
- Coach: 138
- Velocidad de Crucero: 530 mph (853 km/h)
- Dimensión: (with winglets) 117 ft, 10 in (35.9 m)
- Altitud Máx de Crucero: 41,000 pies (12,497 m)
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Comodidades destacadas:
- Seats: Ancho de los asientos del avión
Preparing for the Boeing 737-9 MAX to safely join our fleet
Alaska accepted delivery of our first Boeing 737-9 MAX in late January 2021. It’s scheduled to begin passenger service on March 1. In mid-November of last year, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) certified the 737-9 MAX aircraft, giving the approval to all airlines – including Alaska – to begin the process of bringing the aircraft back into service.
Before the 737-9 MAX is added to our fleet, our team of pilots, maintenance technicians and safety experts are putting the airplane through its paces – flying more than 19,000 miles and over 50 flight hours to test the aircraft. We’ve activated our training programs as we closely test, verify and implement all the necessary processes to ensure the 737-9 MAX aircraft meets our high safety standards.
At Alaska, safety is always priority number one. If an aircraft is not safe, we won’t fly it.
There is nothing more important than the safety of everyone on board every aircraft we fly.
When we talk about safety, we mean it. Each of our employees is empowered to stop any part of our operation if something isn’t right. We call it “Ready, SAFE, Go.” Before we do anything, we take a moment to check whether everyone is ready, we make sure we’re being safe, and only then do we go.
Alaska manages safety through our Safety Management System (SMS). We were the first major U.S. airline to receive FAA validation and acceptance of our SMS in 2016, even before it became required in 2018. It helps us focus on safety – every day. Rather than rely on a separate “safety manager” or “safety department,” our SMS empowers employees at all levels to participate in it and improve the process.
Alaska will fly the Boeing 737-9 MAX only after our own assessments, verifications and internal reviews determine that the aircraft is safe throughout our network for our guests and our crews. Teams from divisions across Alaska are working on the entry into service requirements for the 737-9 MAX.
“As a safety professional with decades of experience, including many years with the FAA, I’ve had the opportunity to stay very close to the FAA and Boeing through the grounding and recertification of the 737 MAX. I’m very confident with all the steps the FAA and Boeing have taken and the steps we’re taking at Alaska to prepare us to safely bring this aircraft into our fleet.”
— Max Tidwell, Alaska’s Vice President of Safety & Security
We have confidence in the certification process of the 737-9 MAX.
Boeing has worked closely with the FAA and international regulatory authorities to make improvements to the 737-9 flight control system and mandatory pilot training. Our teams remained in close contact with Boeing and the FAA all along the way.
We have high expectations and confidence that Boeing has made the required changes and necessary improvements to the 737-9 and that, with these updates, the 737-9 MAX will meet the high safety standards we expect.
We’re putting the 737-9 MAX through its paces.
We are spending a lot of time with our first 737-9 MAX aircraft before it’s put into service. Our pilots are flying it more than 50 flight hours and roughly 19,000 miles on what are called “proving flights” to confirm our safety assessments and ensure a full understanding of the airplane’s capabilities in different climates and terrain:
These proving flights are part of the formal delivery process of bringing a new aircraft into the fleet. The flights will be supervised directly by the FAA with representatives on board to evaluate that we can safely operate the aircraft. It will give our pilots the opportunity to:
There will also be “gate fit” tests at designated airports to ensure the readiness of ground operations with the new airplane.
Antecedentes
The 737-9 MAX was designed with larger, more efficient engines. To help pilots with the handling of the aircraft, Boeing implemented new flight control software called MCAS, or Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System. MCAS relied on information from a single sensor to monitor the angle of the airplane. In two accidents, the sensor – an ‘angle of attack’ vane – gave incorrect data to MCAS, which caused the system to activate repeatedly.
Boeing has since made key changes to prevent the previous issues from happening again:
What happens next with our 737-9 MAX?
The FAA’s airworthiness directive outlined the required software updates along with the training requirements for flight crews, maintenance technicians and ground crews that must be completed before we bring the 737-9 MAX into service.
With the delivery of our first aircraft, we’re following a service readiness timeline that’s guiding the actions we must take before we begin flying our passengers. The process could take about six weeks for our first 737-9 MAX to join our fleet after rigorous rounds of test flying, verifying and preparing.