It’s been news lately as the glamor girls of the sky, the long-serving 747 and the short-termed A380, start disappearing from the sky. But a plane that was once ubiquitous, the MD80, with nearly 1200 serving dozens of airlines, is also headed that way. Only about 200 remain in service.
American has announced final flight dates for its already-shrunken fleet of 26, down from over 100. On September 3rd and 4th, all 26 will fly their last runs in a kind of mass extinction that will end at the boneyard. Only Delta remains a significant operator, with 80 in its fleet.
The MD80, sometimes called the Mad Dog, was designed by McDonnell Douglas as a successor to the DC-9 after McDonnell and Douglas merged. Its part of a family that included the MD95, a plane that was only built after Boeing bought out MDs commercial division. That one flies as the Boeing 717.
