I’m happy to report that Alaska Airlines 737-900ER first class has improved since the last time that I flew it (two years ago). I also regret to inform you that it has also worsened a bit.
I like the fact that the seats (and cabins) now look modern and clean. They’ve done a really good job making them look more consistent with what they offer on their newest aircraft types.
I do not like the fact that they keep removing cheese wedges from what was once the best fruit and cheese plate in the sky. Oh how the mighty have fallen.
AS630
Seattle, WA (SEA) – Salt Lake City, UT (SLC)
Thursday, November 20, 2025
Aircraft: 737-990ER
Registration: N491AS
Duration: 1 hour 42 minutes
Seat: 3A (First Class)
My full review of Alaska Airlines 737-900ER first class from Seattle to Salt Lake City
The problem with flying Alaska Airlines is that you never really know what aircraft type you’re going to get until you show up to the gate.
This was booked as a 737-800. A week later, it changed to a 737 MAX 9. One day before departure, they switched it to a 737-900ER. This indecision resulted in what I consider to be the least exciting of aircraft types, but at least it gave me the opportunity to try out the latest and greatest version of it.
Arrival at the Seattle Tacoma International Airport
I arrived at the main terminal at approximately 6:41 AM for this 9:55 AM flight down to Salt Lake City. It was pure pandemonium with people and bags and pets and luggage carts all over the place. Thanks to my TSA Precheck and Clear credentials, I made it through security (drama free) in less than 10 minutes.
The boarding process for flight number 630 to Salt Lake City
The reason for a last-minute swap to the 737-900ER was lost on me upon realization that this was going to be a very light load down to SLC this morning. With maybe 100 passengers waiting in the gate area, assigning a high-capacity long range aircraft to this mission seemed a bit overkill.
Boarding started at exactly 9:17 AM. I bit my tongue as I felt the urge to offer my opinions about the last-minute aircraft swap to the gate agent and she scanned my boarding pass. History has taught me to keep that sort of obnoxious AvGeekery to myself. It’s better for everyone involved.
Alaska Airlines 737-900ER first class seat and cabin overview
There are 16 first class seats on the Alaska Airlines 737-900ER. It’s 4 rows total, in a typical 2-2 layout. The best part? They’re not covered in wrinkly and loose old man scrotum leather anymore! It looks modern and fresh. And tight. And not gross.
Although these seats are kinda similar to what you’ll find in other Alaska Airlines aircraft, they’re not exactly the same. I much prefer the ones in the MAX 9 (which you can see in my Alaska Airlines 737 MAX 9 first class review).
Our departure from Seattle
They missed our departure time by eight minutes. Thankfully, it was eight minutes in the right direction! Instead of push pushing off the gate at 9:55 AM, they had us scootin’ back at 9:47. That’s my kind of miscalculation.
Our taxi out to 16L was a bit lazy unfortunately, and it ended up taking 24 minutes when it was only supposed to take 10 (according to the Flighty app). By the time we took off, we were six minutes behind schedule.
In-flight entertainment
Alaska Airlines does not offer video screens in any seat on any aircraft. All in flight entertainment comes in the form of a free streaming service, which you can access with your personal device.
It’s a pretty decent catalog of content, and I like that they offer a pretty good assortment of music and podcasts as well. I didn’t listen to any of it, but I like it anyway.
Perhaps my biggest gripe about the in flight entertainment here in first class on the 737-900ER is the fact that there are no device holders built into the seat. You’re gonna have to get creative to prevent your arms (and neck) from getting sore by the time you arrive at your destination.
Food and drinks
I was given the opportunity to pre-select a meal approximately one week prior to departure. I always choose the fruit and cheese plate when flying Alaska Airlines, but all of the other options on the menu looked tempting as well.
The quality of the food was excellent as always. Unfortunately, there seems to be far less cheese in the fruit and cheese plate than there used to be. That just ain’t right.
It’s worth noting that Alaska Airlines does serve food in first class on flights less than 2 1/2 hours in length. United, Delta, and American do not. Yay Alaska!
Seat recline and cabin comfort
Choosing Alaska Airlines over Delta, United, or American just for the seat recline in first class would be foolish. It’s not any better. Or worse.
Seat width is exactly the same as well, but at least it’s comfortable. Ish. The seats are pretty hard IMHO.
The descent and arrival into Salt Lake City
I love flying into Salt Lake City in the winter months. It’s probably one of the most scenic airports in the continental United States under a blanket of fresh snow, and I was giddy in anticipation as we began the descent. Long story short, that giddiness was short-lived.
We touched (slammed) down on runway 34L four minutes early at 12:53 PM. The noticeably snow-free taxi over to Concourse B took just six minutes, which was surprising considering how much land this airport covers. Maybe the lack of snow and ice made it faster than usual. I don’t know.
Pros and cons
Even after all of my complaining about the lack of cheese on my plate, Alaska Airlines remains one of my favorite US Airlines. The 737-900ER first class experience is evolving with the times, and I’m happy to see that it’s no longer the crusty “retro / geriatric scrotum” product of years past. I like.
Pros
- Although simple, the seats look really nice. Very modern and clean.
- The food and drink menu is pretty good. It’s always changing, and it’s always delicious.
- Speaking of food, I like the fact that they do serve food on flights less than 2 1/2 hours in length.
Cons
- There are no personal device holders built into the seats. It’s inconvenient.
- I still gotta pay for Wi-Fi? Come on man!
- RIP to the cheese wedges we all used to know and love I guess.
Hey man, I like the review! I’m a little hesitant to take Alaska over legacy carriers like Delta and United since Alaska doesn’t have IFEs at all – curious if that’s a dealbreaker for you as well. Would you personally choose Alaska over them? Also curious about the other menu options on your flight (I don’t like cheese lol).
Thanks John! They do have in-flight entertainment, but it’s of the streaming variety (which can be inconvenient if you don’t have a device with a large screen). The catalog of content is really good though. Maybe not quite as good as what Delta and United offer, but you likely won’t have any issues finding something good to watch or listen to.
It isn’t a dealbreaker for me on most flights to be honest. I will admit that having a video screen is more convenient on longer flights however.
I can’t recall what all of the menu options were, but the person sitting next to me had the breakfast tacos. They looked (and smelled) good! It’s worth noting that the portion sizes are a bit smaller than what you would get on other airlines.
Scott, I see AS is at the B Concourse in SLC. Did you enjoy that (seems like) mile long walk to exit the airport or have they completed the new connection to the A concourse yet?
Thankfully my connecting flight (WN to SAN) departed out of B as well. There are two connecting tunnels to A though…and I had time to kill so I had to do it at least once lol. It is indeed a long walk!
Hi, Scott, I am an admin in an aviation whatsapp channel, and i have been thinking of creating a platform similar to this, but i have no idea how. Any tips?
WordPress is probably the quickest and most cost effective way to get started. That said, building the website is the easy part. Staying consistent is what’s hard!
Do you have any suggestions for something that is free that is NOT google sites? Idt my parents will be very keen on spending money for this. From singapore btw
The basic version of WordPress is free. I highly recommend starting with that.
I think this is the first time you’ve remastered a review twice! Anyway, it’s good to see that Alaska has refurbished their 737-900 cabins while keeping the older, thicker seats. It’s a shame to see that the Alaskan art on the bulkhead is gone though.
Also, SEA might just be one of the most underrated airports out there. It’s hardly ever talked about, and yet it (or at least Concourse N) looks absolutely fantastic. I don’t remember it being that great, so it’s nice to see that it’s gotten a facelift.
I think you’re right! I can’t think of any other review that I’ve done multiple updates for, but the truth is that I wasn’t even planning on doing this one. It was booked as a 737-800 – which was exciting because it would’ve given me the chance to update my existing old and very outdated (and very bad) review of first class on that aircraft.
However, Alaska Airlines did what they do best and swapped the aircraft type to something else that I’ve flown like a bazillion times already lol. At least the -900 that I was on was the newest and most updated version of it.
And I agree with you about Concourse N. I don’t remember it looking like that either, so it must’ve been updated very recently.
WHAT?! THEY DID IN FACT CUT DOWN ON THE CHEESE
It’s just horrible. Diluting the value of my Atmos points is one thing, but reducing the cheese? That’s a step too far!