Due to continued delays with the Boeing 737 MAX 7 certification process, Southwest Airlines has now converted 24 MAX 7 aircraft into the larger and already certified Boeing 737 MAX 8 variant. This news follows the statement from Boeing, which suggests that the first delivery of the MAX 7 variant has been delayed to 2024.

The conversion

The MAX 7 is the smallest variant of Boeing's 737 MAX family, and it has faced multiple delays regarding receiving certification from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in the US, the same as the Boeing 737 MAX 10.

While in March this year, airline CEO Bob Jordan stated that he was not counting on the MAX 7 being delivered this year, it now appears to be confirmed based on the latest news from Boeing stating that the MAX 7 may not be certified by the end of this year.

Following this, as reported by Reuters, Southwest is now converting 24 of its MAX 7 aircraft into MAX 8 variant, as this will allow the airline to take delivery of new aircraft faster and meet the growing demand.

Photo: Vincenzo Pace | Simple Flying

According to reports, the MAX 8 will act as a buffer to the impacts caused by the delivery delays. Moreover, the airline expects to receive more MAX 8 aircraft this year as part of its fleet renewal program.

Simple Flying has reached out to Southwest Airlines to know more about how swapping the aircraft for the larger variant would impact the airline's expected operational efficiency in terms of economics. Any response received will be updated in this article.

Impact on Boeing

While this conversion does not affect the overall number of aircraft in its order book, it impacts the confidence other carriers might have in the MAX 7 because Southwest has a significant number of MAX 7 aircraft still on order. Thus, a change of heart from Southwest could potentially influence the decisions made by other carriers.

Besides the MAX 7, Boeing is also facing hurdles with certification regarding the larger MAX 10 aircraft and the Boeing 777X.

Photo: Tom Boon | Simple Flying

Moreover, the manufacturer recently indicated that continuous certification delays for the 737 MAX and the 777X types could result in further order cancelations or conversions. These changes are already apparent as of June, as Boeing notes aircraft cancellations totaled over $10 billion and a net decrease in the order book, primarily related to the order for the 737 MAX.

First Half of 2023

When considering data from Boeing's order book for the first half of this year, the manufacturer has seen some significant orders for the MAX aircraft, totaling up to 366 of the type. Major headline orders were seen from Air India, which ordered 190 of the 737 MAX aircraft as part of its fleet expansion, and Avalon ordered 40 of the type during the Paris Air Show 2023.

Photo: Boeing

Within the same duration, Boeing has also delivered 211 MAX aircraft. Of that, 203 were delivered to 19 customers worldwide, and eight aircraft were delivered to unidentified customers.

Source: Reuters.