The mystery is finally over as Copa Airlines has taken delivery of its first Boeing 737 MAX 8.
The Panamian Boeing operator which already has 32 MAX 9s in its fleet, and has now taken delivery of its first MAX 8 registered HP-9801CMP. After conducting test flights at Seattle Boeing Field, the aircraft was flown to Panama City (PTY) on July 3, with a flight time of 7 hours and 15 minutes.
This latest delivery brings Copa’s fleet up to 100 aircraft. Besides the 32 MAX 9s, they also have 9 737-700s and 58 737-800s. In terms of outstanding deliveries, there are 39 still in the queue split between the MAX 9 and MAX 8, with another sure MAX 8 in the queue. There’s no definitive split
First flights
If their last schedule update is anything to go by, Quito (UIO) will see inaugural service from Panama City on September 2, 2024. Havana (HAV), Cuba and Rosario (ROS), Argentina are expected to see MAX 8 service the following day. Lima (LIM) and San Jose (SJO), Costa Rico will follow right behind with their first flights on September 5th.
For those looking to try out the MAX 8 out of a U.S. destination, the airline will operate its first flights out of Panama City to Miami (MIA) on September 15, Orlando (MCO) on September 17 and Washington Dulles (IAD) on September 18. These dates are pretty much similar to the last schedule change.
If you’re interested in catching one of the first city flights, here is the full launch date list. Of course this is subject to change, and you should keep tabs as Copa quite frequently performs equipment swaps on its shorter routes. Many of the routes have not been updated on their website either, and I’d hold off on booking until the MAX 8 option is added.
| Departing City | Arriving City | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Panama City | Quito (UIO) | 02 Sep, 2024 |
| Panama City | Havana (HAV) | 03 Sep, 2024 |
| Panama City | Rosario (ROS) | 03 Sep, 2024 |
| Panama City | Lima (LIM) | 05 Sep, 2024 |
| Panama City | San Jose (Costa Rica) (SJO) | 05 Sep, 2024 |
| Panama City | Asunción (ASU) | 12 Sep, 2024 |
| Panama City | Bogota (BOG) | 13 Sep, 2024 |
| Panama City | Guatemala City (GUA) | 13 Sep, 2024 |
| Panama City | San Salvador (SAL) | 14 Sep, 2024 |
| Panama City | Miami (MIA) | 15 Sep, 2024 |
| Panama City | San Pedro Sula (SAP) | 16 Sep, 2024 |
| Panama City | Orlando (MCO) | 17 Sep, 2024 |
| Panama City | Washington Dulles (IAD) | 18 Sep, 2024 |
| Panama City | Punta Cana (PUJ) | 04 Oct, 2024 |
| Panama City | Managua (MGA) | 15 Oct, 2024 |
| Panama City | Medellin (MDE) | 15 Oct, 2024 |
| Panama City | Santo Domingo (SDQ) | 18 Oct, 2024 |
| Panama City | Guayaquil (GYE) | 30 Nov, 2024 |
| Panama City | Cali (CLO) | 01 Dec, 2024 |
| Panama City | David (DAV) | 01 Dec, 2024 |
| Panama City | Denver (DEN) | 01 Dec, 2024 |
| Panama City | Las Vegas (LAS) | 01 Dec, 2024 |
| Panama City | Mexico City (MEX) | 01 Dec, 2024 |
| Panama City | Santa Cruz (VVI) | 01 Dec, 2024 |
| Panama City | Austin (AUS) | 02 Dec, 2024 |
| Panama City | Baltimore/Washington (BWI) | 02 Dec, 2024 |
| Panama City | Boston (BOS) | 02 Dec, 2024 |
| Panama City | Caracas (CCS) | 02 Dec, 2024 |
| Panama City | Cartagena (CTG) | 02 Dec, 2024 |
| Panama City | Cancun (CUN) | 03 Dec, 2024 |
| Panama City | Manaus (MAO) | 03 Dec, 2024 |
| Panama City | San Juan (SJU) | 03 Dec, 2024 |
| Panama City | Paramaribo (PBM) | 04 Dec, 2024 |
| Panama City | Atlanta (ATL) | 05 Dec, 2024 |
| Panama City | Chicago O’Hare (ORD) | 05 Dec, 2024 |
| Panama City | Mendoza (MDZ) | 06 Dec, 2024 |
| Panama City | Tegucigalpa Palmerola (XPL) | 06 Dec, 2024 |
| Panama City | Nassau (NAS) | 15 Dec, 2024 |
| Panama City | Pereira (PEI) | 16 Dec, 2024 |
| Panama City | Curacao (CUR) | 17 Dec, 2024 |
| Panama City | Port of Spain (POS) | 17 Dec, 2024 |
| Panama City | Valencia (VLN) | 18 Dec, 2024 |
| Panama City | Cucuta (CUC) | 20 Dec, 2024 |
| Panama City | San Andres Island (ADZ) | 20 Dec, 2024 |
| Panama City | Aruba (AUA) | 22 Dec, 2024 |
| Panama City | Montego Bay (MBJ) | 24 Dec, 2024 |
| Panama City | Tampa (TPA) | 25 Dec, 2024 |
| Panama City | Maracaibo (MAR) | 03 Jan, 2025 |
| Panama City | Fort Lauderdale (FLL) | 05 Jan, 2025 |
| Panama City | Monterrey (MTY) | 08 Jan, 2025 |
| Panama City | Mexico City Santa Lucia (NLU) | 18 Jan, 2025 |
| Panama City | Armenia (AXM) | 18 Feb, 2025 |
Copa MAX 8s generic layout
Unlike their 737 MAX 9, their MAX 8s will have a generic layout with 16 recliner-style business class seats, and 150 economy seats. Of those 150, 24 are Economy Extra with 34 inches of seat pitch. Regular economy ranges between 30 and 31 inches.
Unfortunately business class passengers suffer a bit of a squeeze, with only 38 inches of seat pitch. It’s actually very comparable to what U.S. carriers like American and United offer on their MAX 8s, but there are airlines out there offering much better legroom. This is also a step down from Copa’s MAX 9s which have full lie-flat seats in business.
Featured image: Boeing
