On June 16th, Icelandair signed a letter of Intent (LOI) to purchase four additional Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, bringing the number of the type's units in the airline's fleet to 18. Yet, the flag carrier of Iceland today shared that it has entered new lease agreements for another two units, ramping up the MAX fleet total to 20 units.
Scaling up
The latest agreement is with leasing powerhouse BOC Aviation. The pair of planes are scheduled to arrive at the operator’s fleet in the fall of next year.
This recent update is one of many twists and turns in The Boeing 737 MAX saga. Initially, Icelandair's initial order was for 16 737 MAX aircraft, which included a mix of MAX 8s and MAX 9s. The order was then scaled back to 12, but the carrier has since reaffirmed its commitment to the type.
The first of Boeing's long-distance narrowbodies returned to Icelandair's flight schedule in March 2021. The airline's leadership has since spoken with Simple Flying about the opportunities to be had with the aircraft.
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Connecting continents
Icelandair CEO Bogi Nils Bogason shared that the MAX is helping his company grow North American opportunities. They have been placed on a busy summer schedule, heading to primary destinations such as Boston and Copenhagen.
The positioning of Icelandair's home of Reykjavík-Keflavík and the MAX's high range has seen it reach far distances of 3,622 miles to Seattle and 3,534 miles to Orlando. Notably, the MAX is deployed on over half of the carrier's transatlantic trips. This factor is something that has surprised the airline itself.
Bogason recently told Simple Flying:
“We were assuming the MAX would cover Europe and the destinations on the East Coast of North America, but they have been exceeding our expectations in that respect. We are using the MAX on routes like Orlando and Seattle.”
These prospects have further boosted Icelandair’s confidence in the aircraft. Combined with other aspects such as efficiency, there is plenty of potential for the carrier and the plane.
Bogason today stated:
“We are pleased to announce the new agreements with BOCA, a long-lasting business partner. Locking in these aircraft favorable on favorable terms enables the company to expand our fleet of Boeing 737 MAX and supports our future growth plans. The aircraft offer excellent fuel-efficiency from previous generation aircraft which also contribute to our efforts of reducing the carbon emissions from our operations.”
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A prominent presence
There are currently a total of 13 737 MAXs in Icelandair's fleet. Registration TF-ICL was just freshly delivered to the airline, with Royal Air Maroc originally the customer of this three-year-old airframe. There will be at least 7 more siblings joining this fleet member in the coming years. It won't be a surprise to see more additions before the decade is over.
Simple Flying reached out to Icelandair for further information about its Boeing 737 MAX updates. We will update the article with any additional announcements from the airline.
What are your thoughts about Icelandair’s Boeing 737 MAX operations? What do you make of the recent updates? Let us know what you think of the overall situation in the comment section.