The Rise And Fall Of The McDonnell Douglas MD-11 

At UPS, we just bought the last 5 of Lufthansa’s MD-11s. The last MD-11 ever produced is current tail# N262UP - bought from Lufthansa. I just worked that jet the other day. It’s a great workhorse with large payload capability. A freshly painted one always still looks good. There’s also a beauty in functionality. There’s a lot to say about it. Not the friendliest ground crew jet but still holds a special place in hearts of avgeeks.

I live in the city that was the headquarters of Varig, in Brazil. I will never forget the day the Company received the first MD-11, because it made several low passes over the city. It was so beautiful to see him fly.

I did quite some engineering design on this aircraft type, in Long Beach. I also worked at McDonnell, in Saint Louis, during the Boeing takeover. A significant cause in its demise was the bizarre parochial attitude of Boeing management. The MD11 & MD80 were both money making product lines. McDonnell lost a couple new fighter contracts, forcing the takeover. Boeing pledged they would keep the two types in production "as long as there were orders". They refused to give airlines favorable financing terms compared to their Washington State manufactured types. Naturally, airlines bought the types offering the most favorable financing. Finally leading to the demise of the Douglas designs. Harry Stonecipher was MD CEO during the takeover negotiations. He got a fat bonus from the sale, & Douglas inevitably went out of the commercial airline business later, due to his failure, in the fighter business & protecting the commercial business. The Long Beach employees suffered, but Harry cleaned up. People were upset. I coined the chant "hey hey, ho ho, Harry Stonecipher got to go".

I love the MD-11. It’s my favorite passenger airliner. So majestic and beautiful. It was unfortunately plagued with reliability issues and unimpressive range. Still, I think it’s one of the most beautiful modern jets, and was of course one of the very last Trijets to enter service.

In 1994 I worked at the north end of Seattle Tacoma International airport. Being an avgeek I was in heaven! The most outstanding memories I have are watching an IL-62 crawl its way into the air practically horizontally. The other memory was watching the extraordinary lift of the MD-11 when the planes took off to the north. To see the mass of the underbelly effortlessly angling upward just after rotation at a particularly steep angle was to witness amazing technology of high-lift surfaces. They were comparatively quiet on take off as well.

KLM's MD-11 fleet always stunned me. Such character and the blue livery suited it so well. It was a sad moment to see them go, but KLM, Martinair Cargo and Amsterdam Schiphol Airport made it a worthy goodbye, by performing final flights for enthousiasts above the Netherlands, handing out memorial gifts and escort and salute the planes one last time on the ground. This beauty has a special place in my memories!

10 years ago I was honored fly with "Audrey Hepburn" and "Florence Nightingale" from Schiphol to SFOX. Great and beautiful planes...

Flew the MD-11 when they were in operation for Japan Airlines and VARIG from LAX to NGO. Very smooth landings.

From a passenger standpoint, I liked this plane a lot. It seemed smooth and quiet to me. I was always happy to see it on any route I flew.

In October 1998 I flew BKK - ARN in business class on a MD11 from Thai Airways. It was a truly comfortable night flight. When flying over Central Asia (Kazakstan) on some 30 000 ft, I saw hundreds of flames on the ground: flares from the oil fields and oil refineries of an enormous amount...

My first ever jumpseat flight was on an MD11, I loved them, shame they went away too quickly!

5:12 That was the plane operating Swiss Air 111

How about a piece on the Lockheed L-1011

That landing at 7:19 had to be an inspiration for the kiddie bounce house industry. Nvr flown on one.😑

When I was a kid, my dad worked for the airlines. I got to fly on all of the first generation Jets, including the dc-10. The DC-10 was an awesome airplane. The few problems that it did have was because of faulty maintenance and pilot errors.

I saw a few in my small city working for FedEx before I no longer saw them and I can say that they're beautiful. I miss em

I has nice memories from Finnair's md-11... Actually i has one model plane with Finnair's theme on top of my bookshelf. I got it when i was kid and travelling to Rhodes in md-11...

I remember flying to LA years ago on the MD-11. Comfortable business class seats. Twins were more reliable and cheaper to operate, and they started to match and exceed the range of the MD-11. It wasn't difficult for the airlines to make a decision to move towards twins.

I see A FedEx MD11 almost every week at Changi Airport in Singapore.

MD-11s are amazing aircrafts. I got to ride on the freighter conversion twice. I've never had the chance to ride the passenger config.

I flew on a KLM MD-11 from Raleigh N.C. to Amsterdam Holland.....about 20 years ago,flew 747-400 the other European trip and A-380.. awesome passenger jet......

My only flight on a MD-11 was Swiss Air Zurich to Los Angeles.

Flew on one of those bad boys in November of 2002 from Amsterdam to Detroit with Northwest Airlines. I was so excited to be on board. Never knew it was my first and last flight on one of them.

I always preferred the Tri-Star / Sduct, but the DC10 / MD11 has a simple elegance.

I flew from Salvador to NY and back on VASP Md-11 shortly after they got their international license. The company went under shortly after that. Nice aircraft

Flew on one once, back in 2013 aboard KLM's PH-KCE ("Audrey Hepburn") from AMS-YYZ. I had chosen that return flight because I had yet to fly on a Douglas/MD aircraft at that point in my then-16 years of flying as a passenger. It didn't disappoint. I wanted to get on one of its final flights the next year, but I had midterm exams in the way.

Good to have worked on cargo versions of this aircraft, doing headsets and loading supervisions. Always stories to tell about it

The 1st md11 i saw and flew was in Poland to UK, really did look interesting in 2023

I flew MD-11 (and DC-10-10 and -30) for FedEx for 13 years. The DC-10 was noisy and the -10 was underpowered, but it was a completely honest airplane. I once flew with a USAF test pilot who had flown over 140 types & he said the 2 nicest-handling of them all were the C-130 and DC-10. The MD-11 was a hoot 99% of the time. Fast, quiet, climbed like a rocket! But there was always some uncertainty on landing. LSAS was making its own inputs, and it was possible to get out of sync with it (PIO: make a correction, nothing seems to happen, make a bigger one, then both kick in resulting in an overreaction). The MD-11 wonderful from takeoff to 50' RA.

I have never flown on one but I love them!

Such a beautiful plane! Looks like the Enterprise from Star Trek

I would fly on the MD11 Before I would get on a Boeing 737 !! The MD11 WAS A BEAUTIFUL JET it had a high Fuel burn but it's still flying today ,that says a whole lot !! A VERY HIGH EYE CATCHING AIRCRAFT ,A BEAUTY IN THE SKY ❤❤

I came to America in one at 6 months old hopefully/ pipe dream if I ever get picked to fly one in the cargo airlines 😅

My favorite plane ever

I didn’t realize that Delta flew the MD-11. KLM used to fly the MD-11 here to Ecuador (with a refueling stop in the Caribbean). Now, they fly the 777-200ER nonstop - usually in the KLM Asia livery.

Miss spotting Martinair's MD-11s at MIA!

I only flew one time on a DC10, from SFO to Chicago. I was late to board, and was stuck in a mid row seat in the smoking section. It was a terrible experience, but not the aircraft’s fault.

We called them "Mad Dogs", landing in a crosswind was an experience that you didn't want to have again. Reliability was awful 1 in 6 legs were cancelled or delayed flying the MD-11F. Loading and unloading was complicated, Belly first, then rear pit, then most of topside, then the front pit, then load the front pit, then finish unloading topside. Most of ours had very complicated locking systems, versatile, but it took quite a while to train ground crews. Landing was hard period, if you came down a little hard it would bounce in a weird way. Fedex had a couple of them flip after bouncing, we never lost any, but they got broken all the time.

they could have made a twin-engine version all along ... they'd still be in business

I’ve had two DC10’s try to kill me on two separate occasions in the 1970’s. I would not book a flight on one from that point. I liked the l-1011 and love the 747 for long haul flights.

Cool video about my favorite plane.

Have not flown on a MD-11 but I did Fly on a United Airlines DC-10

So according to this video, 51 MD-11F's were build, but FedEx currently fly 59 of them?

It's a shame the MD-11 flopped the way it did. If MDD had been able to reach the advertised performance on time, it might have succeeded. Not to mention the Airbus deal of building a DC-10 with Airbus A330/340 wings and an optional Airbus or MD-11 cockpit. But the project "Am300" was scrapped for never to be heard again. It really is sad to see a plane quit commercial passanger service so early. Never got to fly with her.

In April 2001, got a flight on a Swissair MD-11 from Miami / USA to Zürich / Switzerland ; the aircraft stood out amongst its rival aircraft (A-340 & B-777) and carriers, even though American Airlines, Alitalia, KLM and Varig operated the type out of MIA at that time. After landing in Zürich, noticed that the airport was filled with far more visitors than on an regular day of airport operations: it was the last shareholder conference of the SAIR-Group before its bankruptcy in October 2001 ...... The rest is history!!! In a modest opinion, once Boeing took over McDonnell-Douglas in 1997 basically sealed the fate for almost all MD commercial products (except B-717 which was kept in production until 2006) because Boeing considered its commercial products better than those of MD and did not want in-house competition. Nonetheless, the decision of phasing out almost all MD-Aircraft had some flaws: - The las MD-11 F was delivered to Lufthansa Cargo in February 2001 while the B-777 F rolled out 7 years later and the A-330 F in 2010 : how does Boeing explain this 7+ year gap with no best in its sector freighter aircraft in the market ? - Phasing out the B-717 and not developing the type into a family of aircraft opened the door for Bombardier and Embraer to take over the regional jet market, even to the point of "threatening" the B-737-Max-Family in recent times when Airbus introduced the A-220 following the Bombardier takeover by Airbus....

The odd configuration, (not including the reputation of it's previous model designation), could have been intimidating in itself to passengers. That was a huge aircraft that didn't look like the others. Let them fulfill their destiny as freight haulers, then allow them to retire gracefully. The creation of aircraft design oddities are a part of aviation history. There's always been somebody at the design table that favored an unconventional and unique approach.

I flew with aeroméxico dc-10 and swissair md-11, to me they were the best!!

Really wanted to fly on one, unfortunately I was too late

That landing at 7:20 was rough

So how much short was the pax version really from it's promised performances ? 5%, 10%, more ?

yes i have

🚁Aircraft✈️ with more than 2 engines look swave👌

KPHX still had FedEx cargo MD-11’s and one DC-10

Plus competition from the Triple 7s as well killed off the MD11s as well

the MD-11 became the face of VARIG🇧🇷

Isn't range determined by engine performance, rather than the aircraft itself?

The only thing to blame for MD-11's failure is McDonnel Douglas itself and their horrible safety record with DC-10

Magnificient aircraft… not as much as the 1011, but still…

啊 这我在B站上已经看过了

I flew on a DC-10 from the Western Pacific, and the Queen, 2 wks later. The 747 was a much nicer aircraft.

The MD-11 should've become the 797 after the 787 was first delivered.

Still one of my all time favorite commercial jets. When I was 10 years old, I saved my allowance, and bought a model MD11 in Delta Trident livery from the Delta Membership Magazine (dad flew for business A LOT) For my 11th bday in LA, dad pulled over, and I got to see that iconic MD11 with Delta fly in and land at LAX. Will never forget that view.

I remember a ground engineer watching the final sendoff of the last passenger MD-11 with almost a teardrop in his eye saying: "It was the Alfa Romeo of the skies." I was thinking what he could have meant with that statement until he said: "It always had very odd faults." 🤣

At AA, not only did the MDs have range and fuel burn issues, they were notoriously unreliable. Everyone cheered the day ship 7AA (1st 777) arrived and we saw the MDs slowly leave.

"Every landing is a drama" Told to me by a former MD-11 Captain. He went on to say that FO's landing this thing scared the hell out of him on a regular basis.

I was an MD-11 instructor for both Douglas and Boeing in Long Beach and Miami. It is quite an aircraft and I enjoyed teaching it mostly to transition pilots. It handles more like a much smaller jet and most experienced pilots tend to over control it. It was a tough tendency to overcome for people who had experience on Boeing aircraft (eg. Landing flare attitude was a mere 2° Nose up). Consequently many would porpoise on landing.

To me, the downfall of the MD-11 was the change they made to ETOPS, not demand for the aircraft.

I love the MD11. I’ve worked around them for years. They are a true workhorse and I’ll be sad when they finally disappear as they most certainly will. Yes, I work in air cargo so they are still in my world.

Much preferred the L-1011. Quieter and more comfortable.

The MD-11ER ultimately reached 7,240 NM on full payload by 1996. This was one year before the 772ER and competitive with the original first generation models that went to British Airways in early 1997. Of course by then, Boeing insured McDonald Douglas would be history.

L1011 from Riyadh to ORD. Civilian charter flight bringing troops back from Saudi Arabia. It was HUGE! I suspect that’s the closest heavy Tri-Jet aircraft to a DC10 or MD11.

And the TriStar. The Swissair crash over Nova Scotia was tradgic.

I flew as a Space-A pax on a KC-10 from Clark AFB to Andersen AFB in 1989 - obviously one-class seating and it was a cavernous beast, brimming with cargo (and fuel, of course).

I got to fly on a couple of MD-11s with KLM. Went out of my way to do so. I loved it! Such a cool airplane. I was very surprised at the power and climb rate of the aircraft. KLM is such a great airline, too. The flight back to YUL from AMS was a very good one. Got the first economy row behind the first class bulkhead, with a window seat. The extra legroom was beautiful and only had to sit next to one person. That was before airlines started charging for seats like that.

I was stunned when for the first time, I saw the DC-10 standing at the end of the International Pier at Manchester Airport, when it went into service with Laker airways. Later I flew on a Northwest MD-11 when travelling around the States, a night flight, a bit scary. Lately, on the excellent real-life docu Flughafen Frankfurt Mittendrin, I saw the final departure of the last MD-11 to the US, a sad moment. Maintenance staff were upset, the last plane with old-fashioned mechanics. A stunning aircraft I often compared to the Tri-Star, which I also flew on.

I will miss them when they are retired. Being from Memphis, I see them fly over my house every day with FedEx. Back when we had KLM service to AMS, I flew roundtrip on it when I was a year and a half old.

I was treated to a Delta MD-11 flight from Manchester, UK to Atlanta. I think the flight was quite smooth. But I do remember it arriving 2 hours late, due a tech issue at Atlanta on the outbound. They did a quick turnaround, picking up 30 mins, got fairly favourable winds and permission from HQ to play catch up as far as speed goes during the flight, resulting in arriving only 45 mins late into Atlanta. All in all - that's not bad going.

The DC-10 & MD-11 in my opinion have never been as advanced or visually striking is the Lockheed Martin L-10-11

Flown the maiden flight on one of the Martinair MD11's from AMS to MIA as a teen. Returned flight was a nightflight on a DC10, remember that I was allowed to take the elevator to the cargo deck with one of the flight crew to pet one of the animals in the cargo-hole. Good old times :)

Md11 was a good aircraft... if these were fitted with NEO just imagine the improvements in range and capacity, not to mention cheaper to overhaul than build new from scratch maximizing profitability in theory on paper

I'm so sad that I couldn't experience a trip on any tri-jet. They just look so special in my opinion.

Actually, 118 MD-11s are still in service because for the last few weeks i sometimes look at the MD-11 operators. In 2022, only 3 major carriers are still flying the MD-11s and with Lufthansa Cargo retired the last MD-11 in October 2021, all 3 are US Airlines and here's the list : Fedex : 59 UPS : 42 and Western Global Airlines : 17

The MD-11 is absolutely my favorit aircraft! She just looks beautiful ❤️

Should be called takeoff and landing

I flew in one of those just twice (3 legs). The first time was in the last days of December '97 on Varig from Rio to Frankfurt. The second and last time was with Swissair in business class from Zurich to Dulles and back. That was in June 2001, if I am not mistaken. The latter was my farewell to MD11 and Swissair for good and also to long haul flights for a very long time.

That "third" engine always looked like an afterthought to me...

Flew it for nearly 2 decades. From a pilot perspective it was a very satisfying aircraft. Not very forgiving for sloppy flying, but very satisfying to fly.

Most beautiful jetliner ever made

I flew on one of these on an oddly short flight from I think Orlando to Atlanta in 1993. The odd standout memory is that as soon as we got to the runway, we had to go back to the gate so a luggage door could be properly secured.

I flew to Rome on an MD-11 in the late 1990s. As our bus approached the plane, I thought nervously, "Here me go!" But it turned out not to be a DC~10, and I had a very smooth flight. There were. Little knobs on the seats to facilitate sleeping. I have therefore flown on an MD~11, which I otherwise would not have ~ SAA did not have them in its fleet.

While being rapidly retired over the last few years, the MD-11 must not be forgotten. Beautiful aircraft that may not be easy to land, but is a pleasure to fly and see.

I flew on MD-11's operated by Delta, KLM, and Sabena. Enjoyed every flight on this beautiful airplane.

Flew Delta from LA to Hong Kong. Had to refuel in Taiwan, not what Delta expected. Really nice plane from a Passenger viewpoint.

Was a ride on mechanic for the MD-11, From a maintenance standpoint, it was a pain in the ass. The No 2 engine alone made it a headache if you were in a remote part of the world. The 1 good thing was the fuel management system , could do everything from the cockpit, I now am a ride on mechanic for the 747, if it had that fuel system, she would be a perfect airplane

The horizontal stabilizers were reportedly too small for the plane - in an effort to reduce drag and increase range - and this resulted in difficult landings even for seasoned pilots. Not a desirable trait for a new product from a company fighting a reputation for cutting corners and sacrificing safety.

Always had a love affair with the DC-10 and MD -11 planes. I did fly on a United DC-10. From L.A. to Chicago in 1991. Smoothest plane ride ever

This old bird will forever have a place in my heart. ✨🙏🏾✨

Flew once October 1998 London Gatwick to Dallas Ft.. Worth. Very wide cabin and huge windows.

Here in Portland we get daily visits from UPS AND FedEx MD-11s. Whenever I see one I always stop to soak it in, because very soon you just won't be able to see any more Douglas airplanes in the sky. It's great to see at an airport that's 80% 737s all day.

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