In 2022, Allegiant Air placed an order for the Boeing 737 MAX, representing a strategy shift for the airline, which has historically flown Airbus A320-family aircraft. There’s now a major development, as the airline has just taken delivery of its first of these jets.
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Basics of the Allegiant Boeing 737 MAX order
In January 2022, Allegiant placed an order for up to 100 Boeing 737 MAX aircraft:
- The airline has placed a firm order for 50 jets, and has options for 50 more jets
- The order has been split between the smaller Boeing 737 MAX 7 (which hasn’t yet been certified) and the larger Boeing 737 MAX 8-200; the MAX 8-200 is a version of the 737 MAX 8 that allows higher cabin density, thanks to an additional exit
- While the airline initially planned to start taking delivery of these planes as of 2023, in reality the first aircraft has been delivered as of September 2024
- This order is worth roughly $5 billion at list prices
- The 737 MAX will reduce fuel burn and carbon emissions by 20% compared to Allegiant’s existing aircraft
- The primary motivation here is to grow rather than replace existing planes, though some existing planes will also eventually be retired
There are a few things that make this Boeing 737 MAX development most significant:
- Allegiant previously operated an all-Airbus fleet, as the airline has 126 Airbus A319s and A320s
- Allegiant has historically primarily bought planes secondhand; only 13 of those 126 planes were purchased directly from Airbus
- This is Boeing’s first order from one of the major US ultra low cost carriers, as Allegiant, Frontier, and Spirit, have all historically flown Airbus aircraft
It’s great for Boeing that the company managed to get the business of an Airbus customer. I’m not sure it’s great for passengers, though, since the A320 is a better plane than the 737 from a passenger comfort standpoint (then again, at Allegiant passenger comfort isn’t the priority).
Allegiant must have gotten an incredible deal
Allegiant Air must have gotten the deal of the century on these 737 MAX aircraft. Allegiant is an incredibly frugal ultra low cost carrier, so you have to consider that:
- There are secondhand aircraft available at low costs, and Allegiant could have picked those up rather than picking up new Boeing 737 MAXs
- There are significant costs associated with going from an all A319/A320 fleet, to adding Boeing 737s, in terms of pilot training, maintenance, scheduling, etc.
You can’t overstate the operational complexity of this for an airline like Allegiant, which takes an unconventional approach to aircraft scheduling. Allegiant has roughly two dozen crew bases from which it operates point-to-point flights. Scheduling these planes and retraining pilots will be no small task, as this is significantly more complex than at a legacy airline.
Will Allegiant simply transition certain bases from Airbus to Boeing, or will some bases have both aircraft types? Like I said above, all of this points to Allegiant having received an incredible deal on these planes. That’s basically confirmed directly by Allegiant’s CEO when the order was placed, as he described the order as “opportunistic.”
The airline is trading lower lease and financing costs for lower operating costs. The 737 MAX also has the added benefit of having more range, potentially opening up some markets that A320-family aircraft couldn’t reach (like Hawaii).
Allegiant takes delivery of first Boeing 737 MAX
On September 9, 2024, Allegiant took delivery of its very first Boeing 737 MAX 8, with the registration code N811NV. Allegiant only plans to take delivery of four 737 MAXs before the end of 2024. This is way fewer planes than were initially planned, but that’s not surprising, given Boeing’s delivery delays.
Allegiant’s plan is to put the first 737 MAX into service as of November 2024. The plane will first operate select routes from St. Pete-Clearwater Airport (PIE) and Orlando Sanford Airport (SFB), so you’ll find the plane scheduled on some frequencies from there.
Here’s what an airline spokesperson had to say about this development:
“We are thrilled to take delivery of our first 737-8-200 aircraft. The efficiency and operational reliability of this next-generation aircraft will bring numerous benefits to Allegiant and our customers. This new model is not only fuel-efficient, reducing our operational costs significantly, but it also offers an enhanced travel experience for our passengers. The modern cabin design features spacious overhead bins, allowing for a more comfortable and convenient journey. There are a few additional steps in the process of inducting it into the fleet, but we expect to have the aircraft in service, flying passengers to their destinations, in several weeks.”
Allegiant Boeing 737 MAX 8-200 has 190 seats
What should passengers expect onboard Allegiant’s Boeing 737 MAX 8-200? The jet is configured with 190 seats, so it’s one of the tightest jets you’ll find in the US skies.
All seats have a minimum of 29″ of pitch. On top of that, there are a few rows of Allegiant Extra seating, which is the name of the carrier’s extra legroom economy, featuring at least six extra inches of pitch.
How does Allegiant’s configuration compare to those of other airlines? Ryanair has 197 seats on its 737 MAX 8-200s, but the airline doesn’t have an extra legroom economy section. So this is otherwise about as dense as 737 MAX cabins get.
Also, while it’s not really comparable, American’s 737 MAX 8s have 172 seats, including 16 first class seats, 24 extra legroom economy seats, and 132 economy seats. Meanwhile United’s 737 MAX 8s have 166 seats, including 16 first class seats, 54 extra legroom economy seats, and 96 economy seats.
When it comes to the inflight experience, Allegiant isn’t offering Wi-Fi or seat back entertainment on its 737 MAXs. However, the airline is installing USB-A and USB-C outlets at every seat, which is at least a positive development, as that hasn’t historically been offered.
Bottom line
In early 2022, Allegiant Air placed an order for up to 100 Boeing 737 MAXs, with 50 firm orders and 50 options. This was a major development, given that Allegiant has historically been loyal to Airbus.
The airline has now taken delivery of its first Boeing 737 MAX 8-200, featuring 190 seats. This is the first 8-200 variant in the United States. Passengers may appreciate that the 737 MAX has power ports, and also that there’s the option to pay for extra legroom seating. But otherwise, don’t expect a terribly luxurious experience.
What do you make of Allegiant Air’s Boeing 737 MAX plans?
These Max8-200 aircraft will have the famous "door plug" that blew out on AS in order to accomodate the high density config.
Will they charge extra for seating next to the door plug? Free Flight.
The MAX8-200 does not have door plugs. They have emergency exits because of the density of the plane.
Sorry meant Aerolopa
According to Aeroflot’s Ryanair’s Max 200!seat 197pax
"All The Details" is veering dangerously close to TPG's "What You Need to Know..." in virtually every headline. Please don't become them.
That would involve Lucky becoming a total sell-out like Brian "TPG" Kelly...which won't happen.
Yeah, Lucky is clean.
You talk about how uncomfortable the 737 is compared to the A320, but you ignore that Frontier and Spirit are cramming 240 and 235 seats, respectively, into their A321neos, which is even closer to the limit (244) of that aircraft than what Allegiant is doing here.
It's odd- you could fit 189 seats in a standard 737-800/MAX8, and yet Allegiant spent more money on the MAX-8-200, which can seat 200, only to add ONE more seat?? That's strange, to me...
There simply were not enough new or even used aircraft that were technically similar enough so ALGT would have paid more in operating costs in trying to cobble together a fleet than just buying new aircraft with new generation engines.
Jon Ostrower just noted that part of Airbus' worldwide success with the A320 family in displaying Boeing's 737 was how Airbus handled pricing. Boeing clearly has felt the sting of not being able to sell...
There simply were not enough new or even used aircraft that were technically similar enough so ALGT would have paid more in operating costs in trying to cobble together a fleet than just buying new aircraft with new generation engines.
Jon Ostrower just noted that part of Airbus' worldwide success with the A320 family in displaying Boeing's 737 was how Airbus handled pricing. Boeing clearly has felt the sting of not being able to sell 737s like Airbus has sole A320 family jets and decided to win back ALGT. Good for Boeing.
...displacing...
Besides the Ryanair group — which has dozens of these 737-8-200 MAX aircraft spread across Ryanair, Malta Air and Buzz — the only other operator of this variant is Indian startup Akasa Air, which took delivery of VT-YAV last July and VT-YBB some days ago.