Alaska Airlines Bets Big on Unapproved Boeing Jets

Alaska Airlines has made the largest aircraft purchase in its 93-year history, ordering 105 Boeing 737 MAX 10s. The deal is worth over $13 billion at list prices and covers five Boeing 787-10 Dreamliners as well. Deliveries are set to begin in 2027 and continue through the mid-2030s.

The order came exactly two years after Alaska Flight 1282, a Boeing 737 MAX 9, suffered a door plug blowout at 16,000 feet on January 5, 2024. The incident grounded the airline's MAX 9 fleet for weeks and led to an FAA investigation into Boeing's manufacturing quality.

The 737 MAX 10 has not been certified by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), which is a major concern given its five-year certification campaign. The delays stem from two technical issues: the engine anti-icing system redesign and a new crew alerting system required by Congress after the 2018 and 2019 MAX crashes.