Southwest Expecting 35 Boeing 737 MAX Orders

Southwest Airlines is expecting to add 35 Boeing 737 MAX jets through the end of 2021, a cut in its expected MAX deliveries from Boeing, but still a steady stream of MAX jets from what has become Boeing’s most loyal client.

The deliveries are expected to include 7 MAX jets in December and another 28 in 2021. Southwest had, at one point, expected to add 123 MAX jets to its fleet during the same time period.

The cuts in deliveries were reportedly made both because of the ongoing story around the MAX, which included a 20 month grounding that started in March 2019 after two fatal crashes and then the subsequent FAA clearing of the jet last month, along with Southwest’s financial position coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Southwest this week also said that it had reduced its forecast for its December revenue 10% lower, but it is cautiously optimistic with leisure bookings for late December 2020 and early January 2021 outpacing demand and bookings for other non-holiday months.

The carrier also continues to change its schedule for 2021, shifting service to new cities. Southwest on Wednesday announced that it would add service in both Santa Barbara and Fresno, Calif., the 11^th and 12^th new destination that it has added during the COVID-19 pandemic, during the second quarter of 2021.

With those additions, Southwest now flies from 13 California cities, the latest of which to launch was Palm Springs, where Southwest made its debut flight out of on Nov. 19, 2020.

“Our arrival in the Heart of California, both on the Central Coast and in the Central Valley, will round out nearly four decades of investment in our California Customers and communities, Southwest’s CCO and EVP Andrew Watterson said in a statement announcing the news.

“While other airlines seem to fall in and out of love with the state, we’ve focused on increasing the reach of our low fares and flexible policies in places where we expect them to make a difference.”