Taking a First Class Alaska Airlines flight on the 737 MAX 9

I decided no time like the present for reasons I’ll explain to review the Alaska Airlines' 737 MAX experience as Alaska Airlines’ MAX experience is the future here now. Therefore, I easily rescheduled a recent flight out of Seattle to the Bay Area to a flight having a 737 MAX airframe.

The Boeing 737 MAX I got to fly on – N919AK – according to ch-aviation.com was delivered on March 8, 2021 and has a current market value of $43,610,000.

Aircraft: Boeing 737-9 MAX N919AK

Flight Time (Gate to Gate): 2:05

But first I had to get to the gate to board the flight. I decided to take a friendly Uber from my Airbnb to the airport due to the early hour and having heavy bags. Due to having a heavy bag full of clothes and gifts, I decided to use the first class free bag check-in. I received good help checking in a bag, something I normally do not do.

Then I used the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport’s Spot Saver that I made an appointment for to speed in about 14 minutes from checked bag drop off to the end of the necessary security checks. That’s including the time of me having to go back in line after a tote box hung up on the line.

As regular readers may recall, I recently wrote a guide to the Alaska Airlines lounges. I decided since I paid for a first class ticket to partake again in the same North Satellite Alaska Lounge’s views, and yes the pancake machine. It was nice to cool my heels and enjoy some pancakes waiting for the MAX 9 to pull up to the gate.

I was so excited to fly that I decided once the MAX 9 pulled up to head downstairs to my gate and wait. Will admit that I’m ‘that Joe’ who will make a point of fist-bumping aircrew and wish them well as I’m so full of positive energy before flying.

Before we discuss me boarding the MAX 9, some background is in order. The Boeing 737 has been a product family born first out of a demand for a short-haul jet by Lufthansa. The 737 originally reused a lot of Boeing 727 components and parked the engines under the wings. The engines were placed under the wings to add seats to the fuselage. Over time, the Boeing 737 design has been stretched and modified for new generations of jet engines.

One should note the -100 had a wingspan of 28.35m or 93ft, a length of 28.67m or 94 feet, and a wing area of 91.1 square meters or 980 square ft to support a max takeoff weight of 49,895 Kg/109,999 lbs. Meanwhile, the MAX 9 I flew on has a 35.9 m (117 ft 10 in) wingspan, 42.16 m or 138 ft, 4 in length, and 127 square meters (1367 square feet) to support a max takeoff weight of 88,314 Kg/194,697 lbs. My point is that the 737 airframe has grown plus been modified substantially over the generations.

Alaska Airlines decided recently to initiate phasing out both the mainline Airbuses and regional de Havilland Canada Dash 8-400s (aka Q400s). Furthermore, Alaska Airlines has placed with Boeing 145 firm orders and options for Boeing 737 MAX aircraft. The order was recently recalibrated to order 70 737-9s, 60 737-10s, and 15 737-8s for now. For Alaska Airlines, one of the benefits of going with the MAX according to their website is:

737-9 MAX aircraft are about 14% more fuel efficient than our current Next Generation 737s, with better engines and more advanced winglets. Our sustainability efforts are important to us, so using less fuel and reducing carbon emissions makes a lot of sense – and it’s good for the environment.

Nevertheless, some 737 Next Generation (-700/-800/-900) jets will stay in the fleet for a while.

As you can see below, the cockpits also are very different from the 737-100 to the 737-900 to the 737 MAX 9 with the increasing use of computer technology over the generations.

Due to having a few disabilities, I was able to board first. It was also nice to be able to get a few photos of a relatively empty cabin for the trip review.

I was pleasantly surprised at the ample legroom up to 40 inches as you can see here with a couple of bags for scale. I also liked there was boxed water ready for me also. The seat was a Recaro CL4710 for first class passengers like me. The lap seatbelt was easy to use and adjust, and I could still turn around and take pictures out of the rear window to get the MAX-9 wing & engine in the frame in flight.

Speaking of pictures out the window, I have to say that it would be wonderful if the ground crew could wipe down the windows before each flight. But once we took off, the views were nice until we entered the overcast.

That said, the take-off was a thrill. The MAX-9 made a good initial climb and then made a smooth turn to San Jose International and an altitude of 39000.0 ft – and I should note all my altitudes are from FlightRadar24 tracking of my flight. Once safe, I politely requested a glass of champagne to celebrate my first MAX flight – and I rarely drink champagne or any other alcoholic product. But having a personal first MAX flight was worth a very celebratory drink in a relatively quieter MAX-9 than in a -900ER that I’m kind of used to.

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I made my traditional visit to the flight attendants’ office – aka galley – and thanked them for their help with the flight. I also got a few photos of their small office and subsequently requested a cup of coffee to enjoy in a ceramic mug with views from 35,000 feet as we began to descend.

Sadly, clouds obscured a view of San Francisco on the descent, but seeing Bar Island from 12,000+ feet above sea level was a relief. As the MAX-9 descended to 4,750 ft over the Sierra Azul Open Space Preserve, I was able to turn around and get photos out the rear window of the two I had access to, so I had the MAX-9 in the frame.

I then landed and with a bit of luck was able to retrieve my checked bag upon making it to baggage claim after taking some final photos of the MAX-9 at the gate. The airport seemed very friendly and up-to-date, and I wish I could fly into it more often. Especially with a free VTA bus shuttle to the local BART station. 25 minutes from the bus stop to the BART Milpitas station faregate, very nice – and for airline passengers of all classes.

I’m very happy with my experience on this flight despite the fact I paid more for first class. If having the trappings of luxury like glasses and mugs and not paper + plastic cups to drink out of are important to you; then investing in an Alaska Airlines First Class ticket is a good investment. Or perhaps like me, you like having an exclusive flight attendant plus a floater flight attendant if need be plus a good front of the jet window plus yes, an Alaska Lounge that offers free pancakes. The choice is yours.

So would you fly first class on Alaska Airlines? Why or Why Not?

Journalist - When not reading and writing about aviation, Joe is photographing it. Joe Loves educating the public about aviation, and generating enthusiasm around flying while supporting all those who work in aviation. Based in Skagit County, United States