While this year saw the Boeing 737 family overtaken in popularity by the Airbus A320 series as the world’s best-selling line of narrowbody twinjet airliners, the single-aisle US-built aircraft remains a strong choice with operators all around the world. For the most part, such carriers use the jet on domestic and short-haul services, where the Boeing 737 offers operational flexibility and the ability to operate multiple round trips every day.
However, in some instances, these aircraft are given more of a chance to stretch their legs, as is evidenced by examining the longest flights to, from, and within the US in January 2026 that use the popular Boeing 737NG series. According to present scheduling data made available by Cirium, an aviation analytics company, the longest of these routes is over 2,900 miles (4,667.1 km) long, with three more exceeding the 2,750-mile mark.
Copa Airlines Comes Out On Top
Clocking in at a distance of 2,917 miles (4,694.5 km) long, Copa Airlines will operate the longest US-bound route with the Boeing 737 this January. The corridor in question stretches from its Panama City (PTY) hub to
Passengers can expect a block time of around seven hours for the evening flight from Panama City to Las Vegas, while the return leg, which operates overnight, clocks in at closer to 6.5 hours. The carrier has served this route since 2012, with Aviation Pros quoting Copa Airlines’ David DeFossey as saying in 2022:
“We are very proud of our 10 years of operations in Las Vegas. Our continued partnership has offered a travel gateway from Las Vegas to more than 55 Latin American and Caribbean cities.”
Alaska Airlines’ Hawaiian Operations
In terms of US-based carriers, the American operator flying the country’s longest Boeing 737NG route this January is Alaska Airlines. The corridor in question links its main hub at Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport (ANC) to Kahului Airport (OGG) on the island of Maui, with this route clocking in at a distance of 2,796 miles (4,499.7 km). It will serve this lengthy corridor between the remote states just three times next month.
These flights will, once again, make use of the popular Boeing 737-800 model. According to present fleet data made available by aeroLOPA, Alaska Airlines configures these narrowbody twinjets in a two-class configuration with either 12 domestic first class and 147 economy or 16 domestic first class and 145 economy seats. In the case of its route from Anchorage to Maui, the slightly lower-capacity 159-seat layout is set to be used.
Elsewhere in Hawaii, January will also see Alaska Airlines serve Honolulu (HNL) from Anchorage on a nonstop basis. This route is 2,777 miles (4,469.1 km) long, and, curiously, Cirium’s data suggests that, while the 159-seat Boeing 737-800 will operate the three outbound flights to HNL, the two inbound legs to ANC will be handled by the larger 737-900ER. These jets have 178 seats on board: 16 in domestic first and 162 in economy.
Alaska Airlines To Commence 7 New Routes From Anchorage & Portland In 2026
Most of them are to the Pacific Northwest.
WestJet Will Serve Sun Seekers Next Month
Thousands of miles away from Hawaii, but equally well known for its sunny climes, the US federal state of Florida is the destination for the fourth and final US-bound Boeing 737NG-operated route that exceeds the 2,750-mile mark. Operated by Canadian carrier WestJet, the corridor in question links Vancouver(YVR) with Fort Lauderdale Hollywood International Airport (FLL) over a whopping distance of some 2,793 miles (4,494.9 km).
WestJet will serve this route weekly in January, with the first rotation leaving Vancouver on Saturday, January 10, and returning from Fort Lauderdale on Sunday, January 11. The outbound leg, which operates overnight, takes just under six hours, compared to almost seven for the return leg that takes flight the following day. Once again, the 737-800 is the jet of choice, and WestJet fits the ones on this route with 12 business and 162 economy seats.


