Southwest Increases its Boeing 737 MAX Order by 108 Units

American low cost carriers are some of the most dynamic airlines in the world in terms of how their fleet evolves. Once low cost airlines such as Southwest used to stay away from purchasing new planes as much as possible, however that trend is now long gone. LCC are more focused than ever on fuel efficiency rather than saving money on the initial purchase. Why? Simply because the cost of fuel is significantly higher now to where it used to be in the ’90s. So it’s no surprise to see Southwest further increase its already massive order for new generation Boeing 737 MAX. Here’s what the news is all about.

Southwest Increases Its Boeing 737 MAX Order By 108

The latest news fleet-wise from Boeing and Southwest is that the low cost carrier has further increased its order of Boeing 737s. The carrier has further committed to the Boeing 737 MAX programme buying even more planes to maintain its operations profitable with low fuel burn.

Specifically the airline has placed extra 108 orders for the Boeing 737-7 variant. This is the smallest variant of the MAX family and is still undergoing the certification process.

The extra 108 planes order bring the total number of Boeing 737-7 ordered to a whopping 342 units, with another 150 737-8 also on order. Southwest will be the launch customer of the variant being also the first carrier to place an order all the way back in 2011.

These 342 Boeing 737-7 will replace the ageing 737-700 of the NG family, just as the Boeing 737-8 is doing with the Boeing 737-800.

Ordering the Most Unpopular Boeing 737 MAX

Interestingly the American low cost carrier has opted to order mainly the Boeing 737-7, in contrast with almost any other airline in the world. The 7 is by far the most unpopular variant with only 4 airlines placing orders for it. Them being:

Southwest
Allegiant
WestJet
Luxair

Many airlines, particularly low cost carriers, have preferred to order larger variants of the 737 which offer higher capacity on each and every flight. Something that might be more and more of a trend with larger airports getting more and more congested and with slots becoming rarer.

Which Planes Does Southwest Operate?

Southwest, just like many other low cost carriers, operates not only a one manufacturer fleet but a one aircraft fleet. Specifically all of their fleet consists of Boeing 737 NG and MAX. Currently the used aircraft types are: