Copa Airlines Goes 3-Class on New 737 MAX 9s, Featuring Lie-Flat Business Seats

Panamanian carrier Copa Airlines officially revealed the layout of its first Boeing 737 MAX 9 Tuesday, introducing 166 seats in an updated there-cabin design: Business, Economy Extra and economy.

The first new aircraft, now registered as HP-9901CMP, is one of 71 total MAX aircraft ordered from Boeing in April 2015, and was delivered from Boeing Field to Panama City on August 31. Copa will take delivery of four more MAX 9s before the end of 2018, with eight more anticipated in 2019 and nine in 2020.

The newly unveiled Executive Business Class Dreams cabin features 16 lie-flat seats in a 2-2 configuration. Each offers 16-inch touchscreen IFE screens with remote control, power and USB connectors. On select routes, business passengers will receive premium amenity kits, which include noise-cancelling headphones, eye mask and socks. Business passengers also receive upsized pillows and blankets.

Economy Extra offers 24 seats in a 3-3 configuration, each with 34 inches of pitch. Each seat has 10-inch touchscreens, USB input and two AC outputs per three-seat row. Economy Extra passengers also receive priority boarding privileges.

Economy class has been updated as well, with newly redesigned seats by B/E Aerospace, which feature individual USB ports and storage space for mobile devices.

Overhead compartments throughout the plane offer 50% more storage space than their predecessors.

On Tuesday, Copa also announced the MAX 9's new destinations, seven of which are in the US. This week, the 737 MAX 9 will fly to Tampa (TPA), Miami (MIA) and Los Angeles (LAX).

Flight CM393, the first revenue flight, will depart from Panama City (PTY) at 9:05am for Tampa (TPA), arriving at 1:30pm on September 20, returning as CM394 from Tampa at 3:24pm and arriving at Panama City at 5:48pm.

The MAX 9 will begin flying to Orlando and New York in November, and will begin routes between Boston and Las Vegas before the end of 2018.

The MAX 9 features a number of environmentally friendly design updates: upgraded aerodynamic winglets at the tip of each wing improve efficiency enough to help reduce fuel consumption by 14% and decrease polluting gas emissions by 50%, compared to Copa's existing Boeing 737-800s. In addition, the MAX 9's engines operate 40% more quietly than their counterparts, giving passengers a more peaceful in-flight experience.

All images courtesy of Copa Airlines.