# Last DC-9 Flight



## railiner (Dec 29, 2013)

Just saw this...

http://news.delta.com/index.php?s=43&item=2216


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## OlympianHiawatha (Dec 29, 2013)

I wonder if Delta will put as much "celebration" into this as they did when they retired the L-1011. It's last run was MCO-ATL and the MCO Gatehouse was well decorated and local TV news was well represented. We were given posters and Certificates and Champagne was served in flight. Most of those on board were airline enthusiasts or DL employees and the few "innocent" pax seemed amused at all the goings on, especially when we were greeted by the Crash Tenders at ATL.

When we gated in ATL a few of us ventured into the cockpit and chatted with the Crew (it was the Captain's retirement flight as well) and they gladly signed my Boarding Pass. Many of us signed the overhead bins and fuselage by the L1 door as well.


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## railiner (Dec 29, 2013)

The 'retirement' of the DC-9 really doesn't seem significant to me, so long as its derivative MD-80 series and other's keep on flying....basically stretched DC-9's.....


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## the_traveler (Dec 29, 2013)

While this may be correct (DL retiring it's last named DC-9), it may be technically incorrect, as other airlines may still be flying them. Also, the DC-9 was originally manufactured by McDonnell Douglas Corporation (this DC), but the company was sold and was purchased by Boeing. When production resumed, Boeing renamed the DC-9 to be a B-717. So if any 717's are flying, then the DC-9 is still flying!


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## railiner (Dec 29, 2013)

Exactly. So Delta's celebration is just a Company reason to party, in reality....


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## railiner (Dec 29, 2013)

And just a minor correction, the original DC-9 was manufactured by the Douglas Aircraft Company, several years before their merger with McDonnell ....


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## xyzzy (Dec 29, 2013)

The DC-9-50's flying this week for DL are ex-NW. DL pre-merger never had any -50's; DL had a lot of DC-9-30's, but most of those were sold to Valujet, the predecessor of Airtran. I doubt that DL will make a big deal of it, like when the retired the last 727-200 a few years ago.

I don't think there is any other airline in North America. passenger or freight, still flying the -50. Of the 976 DC-9's built (this doesn't include the -80's), only 96 were -50's. USA Jet Airlines and Everts Air Cargo (in Alaska) still operate some DC-9-30's.

The DC-9-80, later renamed the MD-80, has a different wing, different engines, different cockpit, etc. It does share the fuselage with the -50, although the -80 variants have different lengths.


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## Trogdor (Dec 30, 2013)

the_traveler said:


> While this may be correct (DL retiring it's last named DC-9), it may be technically incorrect, as other airlines may still be flying them. Also, the DC-9 was originally manufactured by McDonnell Douglas Corporation (this DC), but the company was sold and was purchased by Boeing. When production resumed, Boeing renamed the DC-9 to be a B-717. So if any 717's are flying, then the DC-9 is still flying!


As noted, the DC-9 started out as a Douglas (not McDonnell Douglas) plane.

Also, the 717 today was originally the MD-95 offered by McDonnell Douglas before the merger. Production of the series was continuous (so it never "resumed") from DC-9 to the early MD-80s, to the later MD-87/-88, to the MD-90, and finally the 717. Boeing was still building MD-83s a couple years after the merger (the last one was delivered to TWA, which was also receiving 717s at the time, prior to the merger with AA).


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