After part of an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 Max 9 flew into the air minutes after takeoff from Portland, Ore., on Jan. 5, the Federal Aviation Administration grounded about 170 Max 9 planes, prompting airlines that rely on large degree in the aircraft to cancel thousands of flights and inconvenience many passengers.
On Wednesday, the FAA approved inspection and maintenance procedures for the planes, clearing the way for the grounded Max 9 planes to fly again.
Airlines said they planned to resume Max 9 flights this week. Here’s what passengers need to know about the plane and their rights if they want to avoid flying on it.
Which airlines use the Max 9?
Of the 215 Boeing Max 9 planes flying worldwide, United Airlines operates 79, the most of any airline, and Alaska has 65, according to Cirium, an aviation data provider. Their combined fleets account for about 70 percent of Max 9 aircraft in service.
Other Max 9-based operators include Panama’s Copa Airlines, Aeromexico, Turkish Airlines, FlyDubai and Icelandair.
Airlines generally share detailed information about all the planes in their fleet on their websites.
When will airlines start flying the Max 9 again?
Alaska said in a statement that final inspections, which take up to 12 hours for each plane, are underway. The airline said it planned to bring back the “first few planes” for scheduled flights on Friday.
United said in a statement that it is preparing Max 9 planes to return to service starting Sunday. But the planes “may be used as spares” as soon as this Friday, United Airlines spokesman Josh Fried said.
Copa, which grounded 21 Max 9 planes, said in a statement it would “gradually restore previously canceled flights” starting Thursday and returning to a full schedule on Sunday.
How do I know if I have booked with Max 9?
Travelers can usually find information about their plane type when they book their flights online, either during the seat selection process or elsewhere on the airline’s website.
Passengers may also be able to find the aircraft type on an airline’s mobile app in their reservation details after booking. For Alaska, this is available in the Details section of the application. Flight tracking sites like FlightAware also have plane information if users search for specific flights using the flight number.
But this is not a guarantee. Even if passengers know in advance which plane they are going to fly, this is always subject to change. Airlines switch aircraft at the last minute, depending on factors such as weather and logistics.
What if I don’t want to fly Max 9?
United and Alaska have issued flight waivers due to Max 9 inspections that allow passengers to cancel or change their flights without incurring fees. Alaska’s waiver is valid for flights through February 2nd. “After that, guests can call our reservations team and we will transfer them to a different flight at no additional charge, which includes Saver fares,” an Alaska spokesperson said.
United’s waiver applies to flights through January 28.
Airlines have different policies covering cancellations and refunds, which depend on factors such as when you booked, how far in advance you want to cancel and the type of fare you’ve purchased. Once the maximum 9 exemptions expire, passengers will not have the same rights to penalty-free rebooking or refunds for flights they choose to cancel.
For future bookings, Kayak has created a new filter that excludes a maximum of 9 flights. This would often mean booking on a carrier that does not use the planes. But on some routes with a limited number of carriers, this may not be an option. For example, Alaska is the only carrier that flies direct between Anchorage and Kona, on the Big Island of Hawaii. The airline has frequently used a Max 9 on this route, according to FlightAware, a flight tracking website.
However, experts suggest that it may not make sense to avoid the planes, which have undergone rigorous inspection.
“It’s not clear or logical why anyone would avoid the most recently inspected aircraft in the sky,” said Air Force analyst Robert W. Mann Jr., noting that the Max 8 returned to flying several years after two fatal crashes that killed 346. people.
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