After part of the fuselage of an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 Max 9 plane exploded in mid-air minutes after the plane took off from Portland, Oregon, on Jan. 5, the Federal Aviation Administration grounded about 170 Max 9 planes, which resulted in airlines relying on aircraft being put under severe strain and thousands of flights being canceled, causing inconvenience to many passengers.
On Wednesday, the FAA approved inspection and maintenance procedures for the planes, clearing the way for grounded Max 9s to fly again.
Airlines said they planned to resume flying the Max 9 this week, and Alaska Airlines began using the planes again on Friday, flying from Seattle to San Diego. Here's what passengers should know about the plane and their rights if they don't want to fly on it.
Which airlines use the Max 9?
According to Cirium, an aviation data provider, United Airlines operates 79 of the 215 Boeing Max 9 planes flown worldwide, more than any airline, and Alaska has 65. Their combined fleets account for about 70 percent of the Max 9 jets in service.
Other operators relying on the Max 9 include Panamanian airline Copa Airlines, Aeromexico, Turkish Airlines, FlyDubai and Icelandair.
Airlines generally share detailed information about all aircraft in their fleet on their websites.
When will airlines resume Max 9 flights?
Alaska said in a statement that final inspections, which take up to 12 hours for each plane, were underway. The airline said it plans to bring the “first few aircraft” back for scheduled flights on Friday.
United said in a statement that it was preparing Max 9 aircraft to return to service starting Sunday. However, the planes “could be used as backup aircraft” as early as Friday, United Airlines spokesman Josh Freed said.
Copa, which grounded 21 Max 9 planes, said in a statement that it would “gradually resume previously canceled flights” starting Thursday and return to a full schedule on Sunday.
How can I tell if I'm booked on a Max 9?
Travelers can usually find information about their aircraft type when booking their flights online, either during seat selection or elsewhere on the airline's website.
Passengers may also be able to find the aircraft type in the details of their reservation on an airline's mobile app after booking. For Alaska, this is available in the Details section of the app. Flight tracking websites like FlightAware also have flight information when users search for specific flights by flight number.
But that's not a guarantee. Even if passengers know in advance which aircraft they will fly on, this can change at any time. Airlines swap planes at the last minute depending on factors like weather and logistics.
What if I don’t want to fly a Max 9?
Both United and Alaska have issued flight exemptions due to the Max 9 inspections, allowing passengers to cancel or change their flights without incurring fees. Alaska's exemption applies to flights through February 2nd. “After that, guests can call our reservations team and we will rebook them on another flight that also includes our Saver fares at no additional charge,” an Alaska spokesperson said.
United's waiver applies to flights through January 28th.
Airlines have different cancellation and refund policies depending on factors such as when you booked, when you canceled the cancellation and the fare you purchased. Once the Max 9 exemptions expire, passengers will no longer have the same rights to free rebookings or refunds for flights they wish to cancel themselves.
For future bookings, Kayak has created a new filter that excludes flights with a maximum of 9 flights. That would often mean booking with an airline that doesn't use the planes. However, on certain routes with a limited number of airlines, this may not be an option. For example, Alaska is the only airline that flies nonstop between Anchorage and Kona on Hawaii's Big Island. According to FlightAware, a flight tracking website, the airline frequently used a Max 9 on this route.
But experts say there may be no point in avoiding the planes that have undergone rigorous inspection.
“It is neither clear nor rational why anyone should avoid the most recently inspected aircraft in the sky,” said aviation analyst Robert W. Mann Jr., emphasizing that the Max 8 was several years after two fatal crashes that killed 346 people , resumed their flight.
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