The Airlines Most Affected by the Boeing 737-9 Grounding

DALLAS — Aviation data platform OAG has conducted an assessment of flights scheduled for this week to determine which airlines are most likely to be affected by the grounding of the Boeing 737-9 aircraft.

Nine airlines operate the affected aircraft variant, and a total of 4,324 flights were scheduled for this week. Of these flights, two US-based carriers, United Airlines (UA) and Alaska Airlines (AS), planned to operate two-thirds of them.

COPA Airlines (CM), based in Panama, had 77 flights scheduled to US destinations, and Aeromexico (AM) had an additional 64 flights planned.

Copa Airlines HP-9901CMP Boeing 737-9 MAX + United. Photo: Misael Ocasio Hernandez/Airways

Scheduled Boeing 737-9 Flights per Airline

United Airlines operated a total of 1,768 flights with a capacity of 316,472 seats, resulting in an average capacity of 179 seats per flight.
Alaska Airlines had 1,117 flights scheduled, accommodating a total of 198,826 seats with an average capacity of 178 seats per flight.
Copa Airlines operated 588 flights, providing a total of 100,456 seats, resulting in an average capacity of 171 seats per flight.
Aeromexico had 549 flights planned, offering a total of 99,369 seats with an average capacity of 181 seats per flight.
Turkish Airlines had 145 flights, accommodating 24,505 seats, resulting in an average capacity of 169 seats per flight.
Icelandair had 96 flights scheduled, providing a total of 17,088 seats with an average capacity of 178 seats per flight.
Lion Air operated 38 flights, accommodating 8,360 seats, with an average capacity of 220 seats per flight.
Flydubai had 12 flights planned, providing a total of 2,064 seats, resulting in an average capacity of 172 seats per flight.
Lastly, Air Company SCAT had 11 flights, offering a total of 2,385 seats with an average capacity of 217 seats per flight.

Lion Air (JT) and Air Company SCAT (DV) operate their Boeing 737-9 aircraft with an additional emergency exit door, so the grounding issue does not affect them. However, both carriers are likely still conducting precautionary checks on their aircraft.

Icelandair TF-ICA Boeing 737-9. Photo: Lorenzo Giacobbo/Airways

% of Boeing 737 Flights Operated with the -9 Variant

United Airlines: Out of a total of 10,062 Boeing 737 flights, 1,768 (17.60%) are Boeing 737-9 flights.
Alaska Airlines: Out of a total of 4,435 Boeing 737 flights, 1,117 (25.20%) are Boeing 737-9 flights.
Copa Airlines: Out of a total of 2,458 Boeing 737 flights, 588 (23.90%) are Boeing 737-9 flights.
Aeromexico: Out of a total of 3,769 Boeing 737 flights, 549 (14.60%) are Boeing 737-9 flights.
Turkish Airlines: Out of a total of 3,428 Boeing 737 flights, 145 (4.20%) are Boeing 737-9 flights.
Icelandair: Out of a total of 326 Boeing 737 flights, 96 (29.40%) are Boeing 737-9 flights.
Lion Air: Out of a total of 3,509 Boeing 737 flights, 38 (1.10%) are Boeing 737-9 flights.
Flydubai: Out of a total of 688 Boeing 737 flights, 12 (1.70%) are Boeing 737-9 flights.
Air Company SCAT: Out of a total of 479 Boeing 737 flights, 11 (2.30%) are Boeing 737-9 flights.

When looking at the proportion of Boeing 737 flights that are operated using the Boeing 737-9 variant for each airline, we see that Icelandair (FI) has the highest proportion of Boeing 737-9 flights at 29.40%, while Turkish Airlines (TK) has the lowest proportion at 4.20%.

N929AK Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-9 MAX KBOS BOS. Photo: Marty Basaria/Airways — N929AK Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-9 at BOS. Photo: Marty Basaria/Airways

Alaska, United Airlines Cancellation Rates

Regarding cancellations, AS initially had a cancellation rate of less than 1% on January 5. However, on January 6, the carrier suddenly had to cancel around 15% of all planned services.

On the other hand, UA, with a larger and more diverse fleet, experienced a less significant proportional impact, with a cancellation rate of 4.27% on January 6.

Featured image: United Airlines N27519 Boeing 737-9. Photo: Brandon Farris/Airways