• 787-8 Dreamliner
    Boeing
    Stock Code:
    BA
    Date Founded:
    1916-07-15
    CEO:
    Dave Calhoun
    Headquarters Location:
    Chicago, USA
    Key Product Lines:
    Boeing 737, Boeing 747, Boeing 757, Boeing 767, Boeing 777, Boeing 787
    Business Type:
    Planemaker

When the Boeing 737 MAX began being recertified by regulatory authorities around the world in late 2020, there was something of a question mark as to how quickly it would bounce back. After all, crews needed extra training, and passengers may have been wary of the type's checkered past. However, recent data from Boeing has shown that, since recertification, the type has been very busy indeed.

The key figures

Data from ch-aviation.com currently lists 642 examples from the Boeing 737 MAX family as being active, an impressive figure in itself. However, when you consider that this figure is just a fraction of almost 5,000 total orders for the series, and the MAX 7 and 10 are yet to service, it is clear that there are plenty more to come.

It has now been around 18 months since the narrowbody re-entered service, following a 20-month operational hiatus due to a lengthy recertification process following two fatal crashes. Now in mid-2022, Boeing's VP of Commercial Marketing, Darren Hulst, summarized its post-recertification use figures as follows:

"There are now over 630 737 MAX aircraft in service with about 45 airlines. (...) Since December 2020, the fleet has accumulated over 1.5 million flight hours in revenue service, accumulated over about 600,000 revenue departures: that's over two hours per flight in terms of average length."

Aeromexico Boeing 737 MAX
Photo: Boeing

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Strong operational efficiency on a daily basis

The MAX's resurgence has been helped by the fact that, after a lengthy period of coronavirus-related uncertainty, the world of commercial air travel now seems to be back on the up once again. Flight-starved passengers have been returning to the skies en masse, and airlines can't get their MAX aircraft back in the air soon enough. In this regard, Hulst explained in a presentation last week that:

"We're closing in on 2500 daily departures. (...) When you talk about what airlines value, they value the efficiency that the aircraft brings, but they also value reliability. The 737NG has been the gold standard for reliability in the industry with a 99.7% schedule reliability. Right now, we're closing in on 99.6% with the MAX as we get more and more aircraft out of storage in the service."

Specifically, the schedule reliability for the 737 MAX given by Boeing at the time of last week's presentation was 99.55%. It will certainly be interesting to see how long it takes for this to meet and even exceed the 737NG's standard.

Oman Air's 1st 737 MAX
Photo: Boeing

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Post-recertification gross orders have exceeded 1,000

As well as getting the MAX back into service, airlines have also been keen to add more examples of the next-generation narrowbody to their order books since its re-introduction. Carriers are confident in the recertified jet, with Hulst explaining that "since its return the service, we've now had over 1,000 gross orders for the 737 MAX, [including] at least seven new customers."

The specific total for post-recertification orders stands at 1,015 aircraft. 410 MAX jets have been delivered since the type returned to the skies, including the first examples of the high-density version. Indeed, Hulst confirmed that "there are over 70 of those aircraft in service with Ryanair." After an uncertain few years, the MAX certainly looks set to make full use of the post-pandemic travel boom.

What do you make of the MAX's operational statistics since returning to service? Have you flown on one in recent months? Let us know your thoughts and experiences in the comments!