Gallery Update: 737 MAX Sightings at PDX!

I haven't done a spotting trip up to PDX since December and I figured today would be a good day to rectify that!

The one bit of good news that occurred at the tail-end of a dismal year that is known as 2020 was the recertification and un-grounding of the Boeing 737 MAX family in certain parts of the world (including the U.S.!) following two high-profile crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia and the subsequent worldwide grounding of the type. The MAX has been grounded for over a year and half and the FAA cleared the type to fly on November 18, 2020, with European and Canadian regulators following suit in January 2021; the 20-month grounding was the longest ever for a U.S.-built airliner and suffered excessive scrutiny from the media, politics, and all throughout social media.

Since recertification, Boeing has begun delivering the MAX backlog they've had in storage. Current MAX owners such as Southwest, United, and American Airlines have all since resumed operations of their respective 737 MAX fleets. Alaska Airlines also recently received their first Boeing 737 MAX 9 as part of their transition back to an all-Boeing fleet, hence the reason for today's spotting trip!

Portland (PDX) 60

Preview:

United Airlines Airbus A320-232 (N465UA) airborne off 28R as UAL490 for Houston-Intercontinental.

UPS Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-11F (N251UP) parked on the ramp. Arrived early this morning from Louisville as UPS974 and is scheduled to return to its "Worldport" in Louisville around midnight tonight as UPS991.

Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-990/ER (N468AS) arriving on 28L as ASA780 from Seattle/Tacoma.

Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 9 (N918AK) arriving on 28L as ASA1391 from Los Angeles. My first time seeing a MAX in the Alaska livery and my first time seeing the MAX 9 variant!

This frame is the third MAX built for Alaska Airlines.

United Airlines Boeing 737-924/ER (N37427) arriving on 28R as UAL464 from Denver.

Guardian Flight Learjet 45 (N145XL) taxiing to the FBO after arriving on 28R from Anchorage as LN145XL.

Dassault Falcon 50 (N420CL) arriving on 28R.

SkyWest Airlines (d/b/a Delta Connection) Embraer ERJ-170LL E-175SC (N264SY) airborne off 28R as SKW3841 for Seattle/Tacoma. This is the third "special configuration" E-175 delivered to SkyWest to operate on the behalf of Delta.

Southwest Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 8 (N8735L) taxiing out for departure as SWA6706 for Phoenix-Sky Harbor.

SWA6706 departing on 28R for Phoenix-Sky Harbor.

While Southwest did not waste time in working to get their MAXs back into service, the airline was the last U.S. air carrier to return the type to revenue service. In fact, Southwest only just resumed revenue service of their 737 MAXs just nine days prior!

This frame was delivered and then almost immediately grounded at the the start of the grounding crisis the MAX family suffered.

Needless to say, this frame went straight from the manufacturer to long-term storage in Victorville, California.

This airframe was also used for some "readiness flights" for the MAX fleet's return-to-service earlier this year. It was so gratifying to catch two 737 MAXs on a single spotting trip!

Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-7H4 (N487WN) airborne off 28R as SWA3064 for Las Vegas.

United Airlines Airbus A320-232 (N470UA) taxiing for departure as UAL2240 for Denver.

Spirit Airlines Airbus A320-271N (N902NK) taxiing for departure as NKS671 for Las Vegas.

KD Aviation Dassault Falcon 2000 (N513KD) taxiing to the FBO after arriving on 28R from Dallas-Love.

NKS671 airborne off 28R for Las Vegas.

Delta Air Lines Boeing 737-832 (N381DN) in the SkyTeam livery taxiing out for departure as DAL1418 for Salt Lake City.

DAL1418 airborne off 28R for Salt Lake City.

Volaris Airbus A320-271N (N541VL) taxiing for departure as VOI957 for Guadalajara.

N918AK taxiing for departure as ASA1413 for Los Angeles.

ASA1413 departing on 28L for Los Angeles.

Alaska Airlines formally took delivery of their very-first MAX in January of this year and began revenue service of the type at the beginning of this month. As the airline takes on more 737 MAX 9s in the coming months and years, we can expect this to become a common sight here at PDX and throughout the carrier's route network.

Alaska Airlines' mainline division is striving to return to an all-Boeing fleet, and the 737 MAX is slated replace the Airbus A320-200 fleet they inherited from their merger with Virgin America.

In addition to the excitement of adding the MAX to their fleet, Alaska Airlines will officially join the OneWorld alliance at the end of this month!