Icelandair outlines provisional B737 MAX network plans

Icelandair (FI, Reykjavik Keflavik) is planning to commence regular B737 MAX 8 operations during the first quarter of 2018, ch-aviation analysis of schedule data has revealed.

Preliminary research suggests the Icelandic carrier has penciled in a tentative March 19 EIS date for the type on the Reykjavik Keflavik-Berlin Tegel route which will operate up to 6x weekly.

Thereafter, the twinjet will be used to run additional sectors from Keflavik including Paris Orly (6x weekly effective May 1), Birmingham Int'l (2x weekly effective May 3), Hamburg Helmut Schmidt (weekly effective May 3), Billund (weekly effective May 7), Cleveland Hopkins (5x weekly effective May 16), Philadelphia Int'l (4x weekly effective May 22), Montréal Trudeau (3x weekly effective May 24), Stockholm Arlanda (weekly effective June 1), Halifax (up to 4x weekly effective June 2), and Amsterdam (2x weekly effective June 4). From early May, it will also use the MAX 8 aircraft for its triangle services from Keflavik to Bergen and Stavanger as well as Bergen and Trondheim. Both will operate three times weekly.


In its 4Q16 Financial Results, the carrier said it expected to add three B737 MAX 8s in 2018 followed by six in 2019, eight in 2020, and nine in 2021. In terms of B737 MAX 9s, the first three are due in 2019 followed by six in 2020 and seven in 2021. The B737 MAX 8 aircraft will operate in a two class configuration with 144 Economy and 16 Business Class seats.

ch aviation