While some customers have stood by the 737 MAX branding, leading aircraft leasing company ALC appears to have removed the MAX terminology from the name. Many previously suggested renaming the model entirely. However, Boeing's CEO Dave Calhoun said that the MAX name would stay.The Boeing 737 MAX was grounded for the best part of two years following two fatal crashes in similar circumstances. However, having been recertified by the FAA, many other big names in the aviation regulatory industry such as Brazil's ANAC, Europe's EASA, and Transport Canada, are now following suit. However, not everybody is keeping the name.Stay informed: Sign up for our daily aviation news digest.

ALC has ditched the MAX name

It seems as though aircraft leasing company ALC has ditched the term MAX completely when referring to the now-infamous aircraft type. Today, the company revealed that it had delivered two of the aircraft to Canada's Sunwing Airlines (who yesterday received a $375 million government loan).

However, it was noticeable that the term MAX was missing throughout the whole press release. Instead, the aircraft was just referred to as the 'Boeing 737-8'. This doesn't come as a massive surprise as Simple Flying previously reported that the company's CEO, Steven Udvar-Hazy is not a fan of the name. Just over a year ago, he told the Airline Economics aviation finance conference,

“We’ve asked Boeing to get rid of that word MAX. I think that word MAX should go down in the history books as a bad name for an aircraft. The MAX brand is damaged and there is really no reason for it.”

In addition to Udvar-Hazy's previous comments, an ALC spokesperson today told Simple Flying,

"In our public leadership comments we have been clear that we do not support continued use of the term MAX given its history and the changes that have now been made to the aircraft."

Boeing stands by the MAX branding

Despite the appeal by Udvar-Hazy and even a suggestion from former US President Donald Trump, Boeing is standing by the MAX name. Two months ago, Ryanair placed the first significant MAX order since the aircraft was ungrounded. When asked by The Points Guy, Boeing's CEO Dave Calhoun told reporters,

"There is no rebranding going on. There's nothing cute about the way we're emphasising the 737 family, because the MAX is an airplane inside the 737 family."

It had seemed as though Ryanair was ready to part ways with the MAX branding. In quarterly results since the aircraft was first grounded, Ryanair has continued to use the MAX branding.

However, in July 2019, eagle-eyed Seattle spotter @AeroimagesChris spotted that where aircraft were previously painted with the word's "737 MAX" at the front, the text had been replaced with "737-8200". More recent photos captured by @AeroimagesChris suggest that the text has been dropped altogether.

Recent images of aircraft in the Buzz livery suggest that the term Ryanair will be printed in the place of the MAX name, signifying which group the airline is a part of.

Do you think that Boeing should drop the MAX name? Let us know what you think and why in the comments.