Originally Posted by formeraa
Who knows? AS may have made a deal with Boeing to take back the 739's. It would tremendously help reliability to focus on 2 primary aircraft types (73G/738). If they must keep the 739's, it will probably be fine as the 738 and 739 are common rated for the pilots. Overall, this is GOOD news! ^
According to someone "in the know," part of the deal on the 65 options are the ability to convert as many or as few as AS wants to B-737-900X aircraft, which Boeing's board will be meeting next week to discuss the official program launch of.
The proposals I've seen for the 739X feature extended range (thanks to auxiliary tanks), two additional emergency exits just aft of the wings, and seating configurations closing in on the 200 mark.