Tuesday night witnessed a major milestone Northern Pacific Airlines has rolled out its first aircraft from a painted hangar in San Bernardino, California, marking a milestone in its rollout. Northern Pacific Airways, which touts the “next era of travel”, is shaping links connecting several major US cities to Asia, using a fleet of Boeing 757-200 aircraft with a stopover in Anchorage, Alaska.
Boeing 757 front end
The windshield is surrounded by “raccoon mask” paint, which is popular on newly designed aircraft, and the fuselage also sports an ultra-smooth surface, leading one to wonder whether this is what the redesigned 757 MAX would have looked like if Boeing hadn't discontinued production.
After most airlines retired or began phasing out the 757 from their fleets, the aircraft gained a widespread second life in the cargo business. So how did the 757 land on NPA's passenger equipment?
Their first aircraft was registered as N627NP. Nearing its 27th birthday, it was delivered to American Airlines in 1995 as N630AU, later re-registered as N206UW, and became an asset of American Airlines upon completion of the merger in 2015. The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated American Airlines' plans to retire its Boeing 757-200s, so when aircraft sales and leasing company Aersale snapped up a few of them, North Pacific had a chance to acquire the planes that were still in use. A very capable aircraft.
The tail of the aircraft shows the registration number N627NP.
Although the 757 is an older model, with its last fuselage rolling off the assembly line in 2004, it still rivals newer aircraft such as the 737 MAX 10 and Airbus A321XLR in terms of range and payload capacity, and even surpasses them in takeoff performance and wet runway operations. The 757's blistering performance, often referred to as “overpower,” may be just what the doctor ordered for North Pacific's narrow-body, long-haul flight program. Of course, economics plays a big role.
“We don't think the 757 is 'Mr. Right' but 'Mr.' right now,” CEO Rob McKinney explained. While the 757 has many advantages, its age and Rolls-Royce RB211 engines are variables that affect profits. While the aircraft's inventory is reliable enough that the NPA plans to have 12 of the model at launch and is working toward a goal of operating as many as 50 of the model, the aircraft's fuel consumption is nowhere near as high as the Prius in the sky. Thankfully, the 757 is becoming more common in cargo traffic and its engines are used in many places, giving Northern Pacific the opportunity to control aircraft maintenance costs to some extent until newer aircraft become more readily available, including considering wide-body aircraft.
Northern Pacific seat model showing business and economy class.
Inside, there are plenty of black vegan leather seats with elegant stitching that reflect abstractions of mountains and glaciers. NPA will provide 3 rows of 2×2 business seats and 176 economy seats in the rest of the cabin. Services will include a variety of Pepsi-Cola and Brown-Forman products.
Often compared to Pacific Icelandair, Nor Pacific targets a tried and true aircraft, not just a 757, but also has a mid-ocean point where passengers can transfer or disembark to enjoy a location that is a great destination in itself. McKinney explained his dissatisfaction with the number of flights flying over Anchorage to Asia, forcing Alaskans to fly to Seattle to rebook flights across the Pacific.
McKinney also said they took advantage of the heat to strike, offering slot machines and gates at inflated prices.
Northern Pacific plans to begin service in the second half of 2022, with operations still “pending government approval.” They intend to serve cities in New York, Florida, California, Texas and Nevada, as well as offer direct flights to cities in Japan and South Korea, all with a connection in Anchorage, Alaska.
To learn more about the airline, visit np.com.
