# DC-10 Makes It's Last Commercial Passenger Flight



## Blackwolf (Dec 6, 2013)

> Some commercial jets receive soaring fanfare when they hang up their wings. Remember all that fuss over the Concorde?
> 
> Now it's the McDonnell Douglas DC-10's turn. But what sort of retirement party awaits the airline industry's final scheduled DC-10 passenger flight?
> 
> The final-flight honor goes to Bangladesh Biman Airlines, operator of the world's last passenger DC-10 -- which the airline says will be making its final scheduled flight on December 7, on an otherwise routine flight.


http://www.cnn.com/2013/12/05/travel/dc-10-last-flight/index.html?hpt=hp_c3


----------



## OlympianHiawatha (Dec 6, 2013)

_*KLM *_is still pushing a few MD-11s, the followup to the 10 and they are suppose to remain in service into 2014.


----------



## MrFSS (Dec 6, 2013)

I last flew in a one of them from Honolulu to Seattle in 2003 - in first class, yet. Our retirement trip! I thought it was a very nice plane, even as old as this one we were on was.


----------



## xyzzy (Dec 6, 2013)

Delta is supposed to operate its last revenue DC-9-50 flight on January 6, 2014 MSP-ATL. The exact date and origin have been a matter of debate over the last several months, but this is information from two days ago. It could change again.

I believe this is the last DC-9-30 or DC-9-50 passenger schedule op in North America. Might be another one rest of world, and there are still DC-9-30/50 in nonscheduled, governmental, or private use - not to mention cargo.


----------



## Bob Dylan (Dec 6, 2013)

IINM some Cargo and Shipping Companies All Over the World still Fly 10s??? I know they are also Stored in the Aircraft Boneyard in Arizona, you Can see them from the Sunset Ltd. as it Rolls Past on the Way To/From Tuscon!!


----------



## SubwayNut (Dec 6, 2013)

Slightly OT, Just curious is the boneyard east or west of Tuscon? (I'm doing LAX to TUS next month)


----------



## Bob Dylan (Dec 6, 2013)

SubwayNut said:


> Slightly OT, Just curious is the boneyard east or west of Tuscon? (I'm doing LAX to TUS next month)


It's East of Downtown by Davis -Monthan AFB on Both Sides of the Tracks, there are Militay, Shipping Company and Airliners Stored there! Since youre not Riding the Train, you can see them from the Road! You may want to Google and see if you can arrange a Tour if youre Staying in Tuscon!!


----------



## OlympianHiawatha (Dec 6, 2013)

Federal Express (FedEx) still operates 10s, but they have modified them to MD-10s with updated Avionics and removal of the FE Station.


----------



## railiner (Dec 6, 2013)

I always enjoyed flying in them. Used to regularly between Denver and Chicago on UAL....My longest flight on one was from Denver to Honolulu via San Jose....


----------



## Swadian Hardcore (Dec 6, 2013)

railiner said:


> I always enjoyed flying in them. Used to regularly between Denver and Chicago on UAL....My longest flight on one was from Denver to Honolulu via San Jose....


How were the ones in American's fleet? I heard they used to be in LuxuryLiner config with a lounge and 2-4-2 seating in Economy. Here's a good vid: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9rEhW8SWcU.

I remeber seeing online a poster for the DC-10 with a cutaway. Anyone can find that?


----------



## Bob Dylan (Dec 6, 2013)

I Flew Many a Mile on 10s on United, Continental (to Hawaii) and American and I also found them Comfortable, but I still like the 747, IMO the Best of the "Widebody" Airliners!!!


----------



## railiner (Dec 7, 2013)

Great video, Swadian.....thanks for providing that link. It was tough watching that beautiful 'bird' being destroyed.

Back in the '70's and '80's when I lived near Denver, I flew exclusively on United....AA didn't even fly into Denver until deregulation came. When I started flying on AA in the '90's, the 'Luxury Liner' configuration was gone...."Sorry Bub, No Pub", as Continental's ads used to taunt.....

One nice thing that remained was the "secret seats".....these were a couple of rows around row 17, IIRC, that were basically business class type seats sold at coach fares, when they were not being used on long-haul flights as "crew rest" seats.....

When I lived near Denver, I had a friend who was a DC-10 simulator flight instructor at UAL's flight training center at Stapleton Airport. After much begging and pleading, he finally brought me in and let me 'fly' a short flight on the simulator one evening. He did not use the full motion, or even the video, as it was very expensive to operate, but did let me attempt an IFR flight. I 'took off' on 3-5 Left, flew a short pattern around, and 'landed' on 2-6 Left.....let me tell you, I was sweating profusely, it all seemed so realistic!


----------



## xyzzy (Dec 7, 2013)

Don't be confused by that camera angle. AA DC-10's were 9-abreast in economy, like almost every other carrier's DC-10's and L-1011's. (A few charter carriers operated those aircraft at 10-abreast.)

Earlier this year Fedex parked some MD-10's and announced that it is acquiring new 767 freighters to replace the remaining ones. Will take a few years, however. http://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/ain-air-transport-perspective/2013-06-10/fedex-shrinks-fleet-will-speed-retirements


----------



## Swadian Hardcore (Dec 7, 2013)

jimhudson said:


> I Flew Many a Mile on 10s on United, Continental (to Hawaii) and American and I also found them Comfortable, but I still like the 747, IMO the Best of the "Widebody" Airliners!!!


Bravo! 747 is my favourite too!



xyzzy said:


> Don't be confused by that camera angle. AA DC-10's were 9-abreast in economy, like almost every other carrier's DC-10's and L-1011's. (A few charter carriers operated those aircraft at 10-abreast.)
> 
> Earlier this year Fedex parked some MD-10's and announced that it is acquiring new 767 freighters to replace the remaining ones. Will take a few years, however. http://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/ain-air-transport-perspective/2013-06-10/fedex-shrinks-fleet-will-speed-retirements


When AA's DC-10's were first delivered, I'm almost certain they were in 2-4-2 Economy config, but not for long. Most of their lives were spent with 2-5-2, like the 777's.


----------



## saxman (Dec 7, 2013)

I think I got to ride on a DC-10 with AA from DFW to ORD. I remember 2-5-2 seating. I was 4, which would have been in 1986 or '87. Of course if could have been a MD-11, but I don't know when AA aquired those. I think it was the only wide body I ever flew on until the 747 when I was 15 on BA. I really love those 3 holed jets. Especially looking at that engine mounted on the tail. I also miss the 727, and I'm trying to soak up every minute I can riding on AA's MD-80's. Now, my only chance to ride on a Tri-Jet is to ride on Fedex's MD-10 and 11's. They are all fixed up in the front.


----------



## railiner (Dec 7, 2013)

I don't think AA got MD-11's until the early '90's....and then they probably were among the shortest term aircraft ever employed in American's fleet....they sold them to FEDEX a few years after receiving them.....maybe even before they retired the last of their DC-10's....

Edit....I got curious, so looked it up on Wiki....I was wrong....the MD-11 lasted from 1991 until 2002. The DC-10 from 1971 to 2000.

And their were many other types with far shorter career's there....http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Airlines_fleet


----------



## Swadian Hardcore (Dec 7, 2013)

railiner said:


> I don't think AA got MD-11's until the early '90's....and then they probably were among the shortest term aircraft ever employed in American's fleet....they sold them to FEDEX a few years after receiving them.....maybe even before they retired the last of their DC-10's....
> 
> Edit....I got curious, so looked it up on Wiki....I was wrong....the MD-11 lasted from 1991 until 2002. The DC-10 from 1971 to 2000.
> 
> And their were many other types with far shorter career's there....http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Airlines_fleet


The AA MD-11, I remember they were supposed to replace the 747SP's on international flights while the DC-10 was apparently replaced with the 767-300. Turned out the MD-11 got quickly replaced by the 777.

I'm wondering, why do freighters have so many engines compared to passenger aircraft? Why isn't the 777F more popular?


----------



## Devil's Advocate (Dec 8, 2013)

I don't know anything about large tri-jets like the DC-10's, MD-11's, or L-1011's, although I have flown the 727 and various 742's, 743's, and 744's from the same era. Were the widebody tri-jets any different than the ubiquitous 747's? Or is mainly a nostalgia thing?


----------



## xyzzy (Dec 8, 2013)

AA MD-11s were delivered 1991-1993 and were an immediate disappointment. AA began taking 777s in 1999 to replace them, and the last MD-11 flight was in 2001.

AA's last DC-10 flight was in 2000. They were replaced by both the AB6 and the 763.

To answer the Devil Advocate's question, in the beginning there were some 747s in domestic service. They didn't last long, with a few exceptions. L10s and D10s were more economical to operate, and they used shorter runways, and their wingspan was less and therefore they fit into gates with less difficulty. L10s and D10s were ubiquitous from the mid-70s on. But eventually they were replaced by more economical twins.


----------



## jis (Dec 8, 2013)

railiner said:


> I always enjoyed flying in them. Used to regularly between Denver and Chicago on UAL....My longest flight on one was from Denver to Honolulu via San Jose....


Yup. I did that more times than I can remember.


----------



## jis (Dec 8, 2013)

Swadian Hardcore said:


> I'm wondering, why do freighters have so many engines compared to passenger aircraft? Why isn't the 777F more popular?


777Fs are actually quite popular and more capable than any of the wide body tri-jets. But they cost quite a bit more than refurbished second hand tri-jets.


----------



## xyzzy (Dec 8, 2013)

Remember, many cargo aircraft have low utilization compared to passenger aircraft. Unless you can keep a 777F in the air most of the time, its much higher capital cost per day more than offsets its lower fuel costs, lower maintenance costs, etc. It's the same reason Fedex flew 727s until this summer.


----------



## railiner (Dec 8, 2013)

Haven't for the most part, all-cargo aircraft, been 'hand-me-down's' from the passenger fleets? Sure, there are 'as-built' freighter's, but I would guess more of the former....


----------



## Devil's Advocate (Dec 8, 2013)

railiner said:


> Haven't for the most part, all-cargo aircraft, been 'hand-me-down's' from the passenger fleets? Sure, there are 'as-built' freighter's, but I would guess more of the former....


And yet the first few rounds of passenger aircraft were mostly converted cargo aircraft.


----------



## railiner (Dec 8, 2013)

Devil's Advocate said:


> railiner said:
> 
> 
> > Haven't for the most part, all-cargo aircraft, been 'hand-me-down's' from the passenger fleets? Sure, there are 'as-built' freighter's, but I would guess more of the former....
> ...


Are you talking about old single-engine mail planes? Like Lindbergh flew?


----------



## Trogdor (Dec 8, 2013)

saxman said:


> I think I got to ride on a DC-10 with AA from DFW to ORD. I remember 2-5-2 seating. I was 4, which would have been in 1986 or '87. Of course if could have been a MD-11, but I don't know when AA aquired those. I think it was the only wide body I ever flew on until the 747 when I was 15 on BA. I really love those 3 holed jets. Especially looking at that engine mounted on the tail. I also miss the 727, and I'm trying to soak up every minute I can riding on AA's MD-80's. Now, my only chance to ride on a Tri-Jet is to ride on Fedex's MD-10 and 11's. They are all fixed up in the front.


Can't you hitch a ride on a KLM MD-11 in the next few months?


----------



## caravanman (Dec 29, 2013)

We bought single tickets from a dodgy agent in Greece and flew with Bangladesh Biman from Athens to Mumbai, India back in 1983. For some reason Biman flights never seem to show up on mainstream searches these days.

Ed


----------



## OlympianHiawatha (Dec 29, 2013)

I always enjoyed flying the DC-10 and MD-11. When American introduced the 10 in 1971 they offered $10 Introductory Flights in Chicago and I fondly remember sitting in Row 1 of First Class while we took a nearly 45 minute spin around Lake Michigan and the surrounding area. There was a nice First Class Lounge next to me and if I recall a Coach Lounge was also available. The First Class Lounge had those funky half globe Chrome Light Fixtures. Those were the final Halcyon Days of commercial aviation.


----------



## Swadian Hardcore (Dec 29, 2013)

jis said:


> Swadian Hardcore said:
> 
> 
> > I'm wondering, why do freighters have so many engines compared to passenger aircraft? Why isn't the 777F more popular?
> ...


But there's less than 100 777F's in service. I wish there were more because it should be much more efficient than a DC-10.


----------

