Alaska Airlines has revised its aircraft delivery expectations from Boeing for 2024, with the airline now anticipating receiving between ten and twenty Boeing 737 MAX planes, down from the previously expected 23. The announcement was made by Ben Minicucci, President and CEO of Alaska Air Group, during a first-quarter investor call.
Shane Tackett, CFO of Alaska Airlines, highlighted ongoing discussions with Boeing to clarify the delivery schedule and mentioned that compensation talks are in progress. He also noted that, due to the adjusted delivery timeline, the airline’s capacity growth for the year is projected to be below 3%.
Initially, Alaska Air Group had planned to incorporate 27 new aircraft into its fleet in 2024, including various models of the Boeing 737 and three Embraer E175s for its subsidiary, Horizon Air. However, only two E175s were added in the first quarter.
The updated delivery schedule is part of Alaska Airlines’ broader fleet modernization strategy, which involves phasing out older aircraft, such as its twelve Boeing 737-900s, which average 22.1 years in age, and its seventy-nine Boeing 737-900ERs.
This scaling back of aircraft deliveries is not unique to Alaska Airlines. Other major US carriers, including United Airlines and Southwest Airlines, have also reported reduced delivery schedules from Boeing for 2024, attributing the slowdown to quality issues and heightened regulatory scrutiny.
In light of the grounding of the Boeing 737-9 earlier in the year, Alaska Airlines secured USD162 million in compensation from Boeing during the first quarter.
According to ch-aviation’s fleets module, Alaska Airlines has a significant number of Boeing aircraft on order, including forty-five Boeing 737-10s, nineteen Boeing 737-8s, and sixteen Boeing 737-9s. Horizon Air is also set to expand its fleet, with commitments for seven additional E175s scheduled between 2024 and 2026, and options for ten more aircraft from 2025 to 2026.
