Magic: Boeing Rebrands 737 Max On The Sly. Did You Notice?

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747-8i, 767-300, 777-200ER…being able to tell the difference between these various types of planes manufactured by Boeing can be challenging. In fact, if you no idea how to identify a plane, you’re in the majority.

You may have never heard of the aforementioned types of planes but you probably have heard of the 737 Max. The “Max” came into service in Fall 2018 but was grounded in March 2019 in the aftermath of two fatal accidents (Lion Air Flight 610 and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302).

THE (SLY) PRESS RELEASE

As we all know, the airline industry has been having a challenging time due to the pandemic. This week, Boeing announced that Enter Air, a Polish charter airline based in Warsaw, is planning to purchase up to 4 Boeing 737-8 Jets. Wait…what is a 737-8?

WARSAW, Poland, Aug. 19, 2020 – Boeing [NYSE: BA] and Enter Air today announced the Polish airline is expanding its commitment to the 737 family with a new order for two 737-8 airplanes plus options for two more jets.

An all-Boeing operator and Poland’s biggest charter carrier, Enter Air began operations in 2010 with a single 737 airplane. Today, the airline’s fleet includes 22 Next-Generation 737s and two 737 MAX airplanes. When the new purchase agreement is fully exercised, Enter Air’s 737 MAX fleet will rise to 10 aircraft.

“Despite the current crisis, it is important to think about the future. To that end, we have agreed to order additional 737-8 aircraft. Following the rigorous checks that the 737 MAX is undergoing, I am convinced it will be the best aircraft in the world for many years to come,” said Grzegorz Polaniecki, general director and board member, Enter Air.

Enter Air and Boeing have also finalized a settlement to address the commercial impacts stemming from the grounding of the 737 MAX fleet. While the details of the agreement are confidential, the compensation will be provided in a number of forms and staggered over a period of time.

“In the settlement with Boeing, we agreed to revise the delivery schedule for the previously-ordered airplanes in response to current market conditions. The specific terms of the settlement are strictly confidential, but we are pleased with the way Boeing has treated us as its customer,” added Polaniecki.

“We are humbled by Enter Air’s commitment to the Boeing 737 family. Their order for additional 737-8s underscores their confidence in the airplane and the men and women of Boeing,” said Ihssane Mounir, senior vice president of Commercial Sales and Marketing, The Boeing Company. “We look forward to building on our decade-long partnership with Enter Air and working with the airline to safely return their full 737 fleet to commercial service.”

Before we go any deeper, let’s set the foundation. There are many variants of the 737; 737-100, 737-200, 737-300, 737-400, 737-500, 737-600, 737-700, 737-800, etc. You get the trend. But the next generation and newer 737s are:

• 737 MAX 7
• 737 MAX 8
• 737 MAX 9
• 737 MAX 10 

In other words, Boeing now has a plane called the 737-800 (older version of 737) and a plane called the 737-8 (because they dropped “Max” from the name). Confusing, yeah?

As you can see from the press release, Boeing is being extremely subtle about dropping the “MAX” from the name and is even using the term 737-8 and 737 MAX 8 interchangeably.

FINAL STAMP

This is the first time that I have seen the 737-Max referred to by another name. Again, they are using the names interchangeably so I can assure you that this is just beginning in rebranding the doomed 737 Max 8.

There is no word when the 737-8 (aka 737 Max 8) will return to service but when it does, it will probably be under a new name.

Were you aware that Boeing had dropped the ‘Max’ from the 737 Max? Do you have any concerns about flying on the “new” 737-8? Do you ever take note of what type of plane you’re flying on?

H/T VFTW

(Cover Photo Courtesy of Boeing)