737MAXs Hinted As Hawaiian Airlines' 717-200 Replacement

During the acquisition presentation between Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines, it was noted on page 18, that the Alaska 737s, would be the prime candidate to replace the Hawaiian Airlines 717-200 fleet when that time comes. Alaska has several 737-8s have on order with Boeing, with a total of 85 MAX series on order.

Further analysis in this CH-Aviation report. The yet-to-be-certified 737-7 was also mentioned as a possible replacement, though the -7 has not been mentioned in Alaska's and Boeing's order book.

This past August, Hawaiian Airlines, prior to the acquisition, noted four types that were candidates to replace the 717-200 fleet. We did a comparison and analysis of the four types to see which would be the best fit. With the acquisition by Alaska Airlines, it seems like a moot point.

COMPARISON

The two big questions for the 737MAX are, will any of these candidates be able to handle the rigorous schedule that the 717-200s currently maintain, and will Hawaiian have to make adjustments to work with the LEAP-1B cool down times? And with the multitude of inter-island flights, will they be able to accommodate available belly space that Hawaiian uses for a lot of their inter-island cargo operations? 

717-200: RR BR715 | 128 seats | 1,430nm range | 935 cu ft cargo

to

737-7: CFM LEAP-1B | 138-153 seats | 3,800nm range | 1,139 cu ft cargo

737-8: CFM LEAP-1B | 178 seats | 3,400nm range | 1,540 cu ft cargo

ANALYSIS

Engines: Both 737MAX variants use the CFM LEAP-1B series.

Seats: Both 737MAX variants offer more seating. At 138 seats, the 737-7 adds 10 more seats, especially with Hawaiian's two-class layout. With the 737-8's 178 seats, it could also allow inter-island flight schedules to be consolidated.

Range: Both 737MAX variants offer ETOPS capability to west coast destinations they choose to fly from any of the islands.

Cargo Volume: Both 737MAX variants offer more cargo belly space.

The 737-7 comes closest to the 717-200, but it's has not been decided by Alaska to add this variant to their order.

Local travel news outlet, Beat of Hawaii, published an article regarding the acquisition and future fleet moves, but it's speculative.