Boeing 737 MAX successfully completes first flight

Seattle, Washington – The Boeing 737 MAX 8 took to the skies for the first time Jan. 29, 2016. The 737 MAX program achieved the milestone on schedule to begin a comprehensive flight-test program leading to certification and delivery.

 

With LEAP-1B engines from CFM International and Boeing-designed Advanced Technology winglets, the first member of the 737 MAX family completed a 2-hour, 47-minute flight, taking off from Renton Field in Renton, Washington, at 9:46 a.m. local time and landing at 12:33 p.m. at Seattle’s Boeing Field.

 

During the flight, 737 MAX Chief Pilot Ed Wilson and Boeing Chief Test Pilot and Vice President of Flight Operations Craig Bomben departed to the north, reaching a maximum altitude of 25,000ft (7,620m) and an airspeed of 250 knots, or about 288mph (463km/hr) typical of a first flight sequence. While Capts. Wilson and Bomben tested the airplane's systems and structures, onboard equipment transmitted real-time data to a flight-test team on the ground in Seattle.

 

"The flight was a success," said Wilson. "The 737 MAX just felt right in flight giving us complete confidence that this airplane will meet our customers' expectations."

 

With the other three members of the 737 MAX 8 flight-test fleet currently in different stages of final assembly, the 737 MAX remains on track for first delivery to Southwest Airlines in the third quarter of 2017.

 

"Today's first flight of the 737 MAX carries us across the threshold of a new century of innovation – one driven by the same passion and ingenuity that have made this company great for 100 years," said Boeing Commercial Airplanes President and Chief Executive Officer Ray Conner. 

 

The 737 MAX 8 is the first member in Boeing's new family of single-aisle airplanes – the 737 MAX 7, MAX 8, MAX 200 and MAX 9 – to begin flight testing.

 

The 737 MAX 8 promises 20% lower fuel use than the first Next-Generation 737s. The 737 MAX is expected to fly more than 3,500nm (6,510km), an increase of 340nm to 570nm (629km to 1,055km) compared to the Next-Generation 737. The 737 MAX family has 3,072 orders from 62 customers worldwide.