It’s here! The Boeing 737 MAX has officially entered the Alaska Airlines fleet. Personally, I was very much looking forward to it. I wasn’t necessarily looking forward to flying on it, but I was very much looking forward to seeing what the public reaction to it would be. More specifically, would people be avoiding the Alaska Airlines 737 MAX like the plague?
Truth be told, I think the general public has pretty much forgotten about the woes of the MAX series of aircraft. I certainly have. I mean, there’s no other way that I would have stepped foot on this aircraft just 3 short days after entering service if I had any hangups about it. I’m crazy like that. Or maybe just stupid.
AS539
San Diego, CA (SAN) – Seattle, WA (SEA)
Wednesday, March 3, 2021
Aircraft: 737-9 MAX
Registration: N913AK
Duration: 2 hours 47 minutes
Seat: 4F (First Class)
Alaska Airlines 737 MAX 9 side view illustration by Norebbo.comOur route from San Diego to Seattle today as AS539.
My Alaska Airlines 737 MAX 9 first class review video
I’ve made several videos about Alaska Airlines first class in the past (which you can watch here and here), but this one was a little different.
Not only was I trying to show off what the 737 MAX experience was like with Alaska Airlines, I was also trying to put together an objective review on their newest first class product.
As you can see in the video, it was a really good experience all around. I actually like the MAX. And, as you know from my last Alaska Airlines first class review, I really like Alaska Airlines.
The full transcript of the video (with tons of pics and ridiculous commentary as usual)
I don’t know what the deal is with me and the San Diego International Airport, but I’ve got an awfully good knack for showing it off in gloomy conditions. It poured buckets on my last Hawaiian Airlines flight to Honolulu. And the skies opened up in a downpour just as I was departing on a JetBlue Mint flight to JFK a few weeks before that.
I feel terrible for representing my hometown of San Diego in the not-so-nicest of ways. My sincerest apologies.
Arrival at the airport
Despite the doom and gloom overhead, I was quite excited to be flying on Alaska Airlines’ newest airplane today. It was something that I had been looking forward to for quite some time!
Of course. Of all the days I chose to shoot this video, it just had to be the ONE rainy day we get in San Diego every year.Anyway, I promise you that (despite what you see in my trip reports), it doesn’t actually rain here all that often.You’re standing with me here in Terminal 2 East at the San Diego International Airport, and…gosh dang it…I wish I could say that I told you so.I was so sure that I would be avoiding the 737 MAX like the plague, and that it would be one of the biggest failures in aviation history, but……here I am feeling really excited to be flying on the the Alaska Airlines 737 MAX 9 just three short days after entering service.Was it really safe to assume that everyone would be avoiding the MAX once it returned to service?Knowing how quickly I’ve changed my mind about it, probably not.Then again, it’s awfully quiet this morning. And it wasn’t hard to think that maybe most people were still at home waiting for that goofy SANspotter dork to test it out first.Fair enough. This wouldn’t be the first time that I’ve risked my life for some views.For those of you who are not familiar with what it’s like to fly out of Terminal 2 East here in San Diego, you’re not missing much.It’s a weird mix of old and new, and the puke…colored…walls…Ok. I’m doing a terrible job representing my home airport. Let’s try this again:Isn’t it amazing how well the San Diego Airport Authority has kept this old 1960’s terminal up to date with modern textures and high-tech amenities? Come to San Diego. You’ll love it.
The boarding process for flight number 539 to Seattle
Those of you who remember how nervous I was before trying out United 737 MAX 9 Economy Plus a few weeks ago will be happy to know that I was as cool as a cucumber today. I almost (just barely) looked like an experienced traveler.
This being my second ever 737 MAX flight, I’m far more calm and collected this time. Bring it.Speaking of bringing it, turns out I had to bring my boarding pass to the scanner. They refused to bring it to me.Ok, enough with the stupid dad jokes. Boarding initiated right on time, and yeah – I was really excited to see what the all new Alaska Airlines 737-9 MAX was all about.
My first impressions of the Alaska Airlines 737 MAX 9 first class cabin
After years and years of being punished with the old Alaska Airlines first class cabins, it was a refreshing sight to see their latest offering. Although it was a stark contrast to the first class seats that I had grown to be familiar with on this quirky little airline from the north, they look very similar to what you’ll find in American Airlines 737-800 first class. At least they’re making progress.
The exact moment where I got my first whiff of “new airplane smell”Those of you have been lucky enough to fly on a Hawaiian Airlines A321 recently will immediately recognize these seats.These are are nearly identical to what they offer on their 5 hour flights out the islands and back, so I’m assuming that they will be perfectly sufficient for a two and a half hour flight up to Seattle. And for anyone who is especially curious, do be sure to read my Alaska Airlines vs Hawaiian Airlines comparison to find out exactly how different (and similar) they really are.And before you start complaining how crappy they look – just take a moment to remember what the old seats were like (which you can see in my Alaska Airlines 737-900 first class review).This is a huge upgrade in my opinion. And (IMHO), light years better than the seats you’ll find in Alaska Airlines Embraer 175 first class.Hold on. Safety first! Because….you just never know.And on that morbid thought: welcome to Alaska Airlines 737-9 MAX first class!
Yeah, this is pretty much exactly what I remember my Hawaiian Airlines A321 first class experience being like. Except for the seat color…and the floral shirts…and the tropical music…and the Mai Tais…
This sucks!
Lol, no, this doesn’t suck. At least not as much as you think that I think it does. Or something like that. I actually liked this quite a bit.
It’s clean, roomy, and so much better than what Alaska Airlines first class used to be like.Any yeah, there are power outlets at every seat (as I’m so un-gracefully demonstrating here).As I dig the seatbelt out of my ass, it’s a good time to tell you that I always find Alaska Airlines first class to be a very good value. It’s certainly not the best domestic US first class product, but it is pretty darn good.
I actually find these first class seats to be quite stylish. And before you blast me for saying such a nice thing about such a simple seat, I invite you read my Alaska Airlines 737 MAX 9 economy review. Those simple seats will make these first class seats look like thrones fit for a King.
What’s the runway 9 departure like out of SAN?
I’m glad you asked! With the weather being as poopy as it was today, all arrivals and departures were using runway 9 (which flows to the east). The last time I got to experience this was on my Hawaiian Airlines first class flight to Honolulu back in late 2019. It’s been a while!
The good thing about picking the worst day ever to make a video about a flight leaving San Diego is that the weather is bad enough for runway 9 to be in use.
Yup – as soon as we get a little wind and rain here in San Diego, they flip the airport around and everything flows to the east. It’s a very rare occurrence, and this video shows you exactly what that’s like:
I don’t normally feel motion sickness while flying, but the departure out of San Diego this morning was rough.It was bumpy as all heck, and I couldn’t see the horizon for the first 5 minutes. Ugh.However – if you look closely at the window, you’ll notice fresh evidence of a GoPro suction cup mount. Apparently, I was not the first airplane nerd to sit in this seat!Never in all my years of flying have I seen clouds this gnarly on departure from San Diego. It was very “summer afternoon in Florida” like, which was really trippy to see.Of course, with my short attention span, it wasn’t long until I shifted my thoughts towards the in flight service. I didn’t want to get my hopes up, but I could have really gone for some Lobster Thermidor right about then.
In-flight entertainment
The most important thing to know about the onboard entertainment in Alaska Airlines first class is that you need to bring your own devices. There are no video screens in the seats. And if you don’t have a phone, tablet, or laptop…you’re out of luck (and you better hope that your seatmate is wildly entertaining).
For those of you who are curious, Alaska Airlines onboard entertainment comes in the form of a streaming content service.It may not be all that secure, but I promise you that it’s entertaining.The only problem I had with it was trying to find something sophisticated enough to pair it appropriately with a lobster main course. It wasn’t easy.
The food
Alaska Airlines has gotten much better with food over the past two years. The menu for this flight (still being somewhat limited due to Covid restrictions) consisted of two options: a fruit and cheese platter or a ham and cheese croissant sandwich. I think you know what I ended up with.
You want to know what’s really disappointing? Having a craving for lobster, but ending up with a pre-packaged fruit and cheese platter. Oh well.Long time readers of my blog should be very familiar with the sight of cheese in my airline reviews by now (ha!). This wasn’t the end of the world for me.The very same fruit and cheese platter I was served in Alaska Airlines 737-800 economy class from SAN to KOA a few years ago. And as far as pre-packaged fruit and cheese platters go, nobody does it better than Alaska Airlines. It’d be nice to see them try the lobster thing though. I’d bet they could totally nail it.Remember in my last review where I made some comments about how annoying pretzel dust can be when having to deal with face masks? Well, that ain’t nothin’ compared to stinky cheese slime and sticky grape juice. I felt like I needed a shower after this.
Seat comfort
Maybe it’s just me, but I find the 737 MAX to be quieter than all other variants of the 737. I wouldn’t necessarily say that it’s any more comfortable, but less noisy is always good.
I dedicate this view to Neil from the Moments In The Sky YouTube channel. He’s currently under lockdown in the UK due to COVID, and I can’t wait until he can get back in the air again continue where he left off before everything shut down.Meanwhile, my Alaska Airlines 737-9 MAX first class experience has been really chill so far.No, these are not super-luxurious seats or anything, but they are perfectly fine for medium-range routes such as this. On the flip side, this is downright spectacular compared to the old Alaska 737-700 first class experience.It’s not very often that I’ll get up to use the lavatory on flights under three hours, but the cheese slime and grape juice made this a necessity.Other than that, there’s not much else to say about this. It is kind of neat that these lavatories are very 787-like though. Cool!I may not have got fresh lobster on this flight, but they did come through with melty-hot freshly-baked cookies.The only problem was: was I supposed to eat the cookie….or keep gathering b-roll for the review?The solution to that problem, of course, was to capture b-roll first, and THEN eat the cookie.Which worked out very well since we were descending into Seattle just as I took my last bite.
The arrival into Seattle
Once I got past the irony of leaving a rainy San Diego and arriving into a bright and sunny Seattle, I pressed my nose to the window and enjoyed the sights (and sounds) all the way in.
If you’ve never flown into Seattle before, my advice is to sit on the left hand side of the aircraft. You’re likely to get a much better view of the city on the way in – and trust me – there is a lot of neat stuff to see.I could totally see myself living here if it wasn’t for all the rain during the winter months. Seattle is easily one of my favorite cities in the US.Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Seattle…where the local time is…I don’t…actually…know.
What I do know is that I’m very impressed with how Alaska Airlines has configured the first class cabin on their 737 MAX 9. It’s spacious, bright, and combined with the typically great Alaska Airlines cabin crews, extremely competitive against what the other US airlines are offering. I just wish they would offer a premium lie-flat business class product like JetBlue Mint Suites.
This is it for my 737 MAX adventures for a while, but not to worry. I’ve got lots of other fun flight reviews coming soon, and I hope you’ll stick around for those.Until then, thanks for reading, and…you know what? I’m not even mad about the lobster thing anymore. Just wanted to make that clear before this review ends. Thanks.So long N913AK! I’m sure we’ll meet again at some point (hopefully sooner rather than later, because I have a hankerin’ to do a killer Alaska Airlines 737 MAX 9 Premium Class review).
Should you avoid the Alaska Airlines 737-9 MAX?
No – if only to experience what the latest and greatest Alaska Airlines first class experience is all about. The food won’t be any better, nor will the cabin crews. The seats, however, are far better than what a lot of the older Alaska Airlines 737s still have.
The 737 MAX is a glimpse into the not-so-distant future of Alaska Airlines. And based on what I have seen (and felt), I’m quite looking forward to it.
Pros and cons of Alaska Airlines 737-9 MAX first class
Long story short, all you need to know is that the first class seats on (in?) the Alaska Airlines 737 MAX series of aircraft are the same seats that you can find in Hawaiian Airlines A321 first class. It’s basically the same experience – without the floral shirts, tropical food, and Mai Tai’s of course.
Pros
The seats are really good for flights under three hours. They are highly configurable, there are power outlets, as well as storage bins (and pockets) to cram your things into.
There’s enough leg room to allow the window seat passenger to get up and access the aisle without requiring the aisle seat passenger to stand up. It won’t be particularly graceful, but it is possible.
Although this isn’t something specific to the MAX, I’ll say it anyway: the Alaska Airlines cabin crews are typically the friendliest in the United States. I don’t know what Alaska Airlines feeds these people, but whatever it is seems to be making them extremely friendly and pleasant to deal with.
Cons
There are no video screens in the seats (which is a big deal when comparing Alaska Airlines vs Delta – an airline which features video screens at every seat on every flight). If video entertainment is what you’re looking for, it is available – but it comes in the form of a complementary streaming service to your own devices.
Although the seats are great for flights under three hours, they may not be all that great for flights longer than that. They’re a little hard.
Hi Scott
I flew the Max 9 from jfk to San Diego via Alaska (my hometown too) and sat in row 6 just behind first class. My thoughts:
1. There should have been some type of barrier between the first class seats and our seats as a bag of chips flew off their console onto the floor.
2. The curtain is just silly. And people ignored the use the bathroom in your portion of the cabin until it was announced for the 3rd time.
2. The trip down the aisle from row 6 to the bathroom was daunting. The aisle felt very narrow. I am a slim person and I had to slightly angle my body to avoid hitting elbows and knees. I don’t know how the flight attendants do it. Felt claustrophobic.
3. Seats in premium were very comfortable and felt like first class leg space. Except for that third person : )
4. We purchased the boxed meals – the cashew butter and jam: very tasteless. And the cheese platter which was pretty good.
5. Would usually spring for first class on a long haul but price was too high on this particular flight
I was nervous about the max planes but being a frequent flyer on southwest from SD to Oak I think I will have to just not think about it. Our flight was luckily very smooth and the lighting was nice. I would fly the max 9 again but would spring for first class!
Thanks for your insights Carol! I’ve yet to try the extra legroom seats on the Alaska Max 9, but from what you’ve said, it sounds like my visions of it were fairly close to reality. I too dislike the trend of not having barriers to separate cabins. I understand why they don’t do it anymore (line of sight / security), but it feels far less premium than it used to.
You should have got the fruit and cheese platter! 🙂 Seriously, I’ve tried them all, and the Alaska Airlines version is the best of any US airline. I highly recommend it for next time.
Thanks again! I’m glad you had a good experience – it’s reassuring because I’m definitely going to review the experience at some point.
Carol Sherwood
Hi Scott
I flew the Max 9 from jfk to San Diego via Alaska (my hometown too) and sat in row 6 just behind first class. My thoughts:
1. There should have been some type of barrier between the first class seats and our seats as a bag of chips flew off their console onto the floor.
2. The curtain is just silly. And people ignored the use the bathroom in your portion of the cabin until it was announced for the 3rd time.
2. The trip down the aisle from row 6 to the bathroom was daunting. The aisle felt very narrow. I am a slim person and I had to slightly angle my body to avoid hitting elbows and knees. I don’t know how the flight attendants do it. Felt claustrophobic.
3. Seats in premium were very comfortable and felt like first class leg space. Except for that third person : )
4. We purchased the boxed meals – the cashew butter and jam: very tasteless. And the cheese platter which was pretty good.
5. Would usually spring for first class on a long haul but price was too high on this particular flight
I was nervous about the max planes but being a frequent flyer on southwest from SD to Oak I think I will have to just not think about it. Our flight was luckily very smooth and the lighting was nice. I would fly the max 9 again but would spring for first class!
Scott (SANspotter)
Thanks for your insights Carol! I’ve yet to try the extra legroom seats on the Alaska Max 9, but from what you’ve said, it sounds like my visions of it were fairly close to reality. I too dislike the trend of not having barriers to separate cabins. I understand why they don’t do it anymore (line of sight / security), but it feels far less premium than it used to.
You should have got the fruit and cheese platter! 🙂 Seriously, I’ve tried them all, and the Alaska Airlines version is the best of any US airline. I highly recommend it for next time.
Thanks again! I’m glad you had a good experience – it’s reassuring because I’m definitely going to review the experience at some point.