# McDonnell Douglas MD-80
The **McDonnell Douglas MD-80** is a family of twin-engine, single-aisle jet airliners developed as a stretched, higher-weight growth version of the DC-9, with two rear-mounted engines and a T-tail. It first flew on October 18, 1979 as the DC-9 Super 80, was certified by the [Federal Aviation Administration](https://www.edgepedia.org/federal-aviation-administration) in August 1980, and remained in production at [Long Beach, California](https://www.edgepedia.org/long-beach-california) until 1999, by which time 1,191 had been delivered.[1](https://www.boeing.com/content/dam/boeing/boeingdotcom/history/pdf/Boeing_Products.pdf) • [2](https://goairports.org/aircraft/mcdonnell-douglas/md-80-super-80/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| First flight / certification | October 18, 1979 as the DC-9 Super 80; FAA certification August 25, 1980[1](https://www.boeing.com/content/dam/boeing/boeingdotcom/history/pdf/Boeing_Products.pdf) • [2](https://goairports.org/aircraft/mcdonnell-douglas/md-80-super-80/) |
| Entry into service | Swissair, October 10, 1980, as launch customer with an October 1977 order for 15 plus five options[2](https://goairports.org/aircraft/mcdonnell-douglas/md-80-super-80/) |
| Production total | 1,191 delivered between 1980 and 1999[1](https://www.boeing.com/content/dam/boeing/boeingdotcom/history/pdf/Boeing_Products.pdf) |
| Variants | MD-81, MD-82, MD-83, MD-87 (shortened fuselage), and MD-88[3](https://aerospaceweb.org/aircraft/jetliner/md80/) |
| Engines | Two Pratt & Whitney JT8D-200 turbofans, 18,500 to 21,700 pounds of thrust, the exclusive power for the series[4](https://www.rtx.com/en/prattwhitney/products/commercial-engines/jt8d/) |
| MD-82 dimensions | Wingspan 32.87 m, length 45.1 m, maximum take-off weight 67.8 t, maximum-fuel range 3,800 km, 152 passengers in a typical two-class layout[5](https://www.caac.gov.cn/GYMH/MHBK/HKQJS/201509/t20150923_1854.html) |
| Successors | MD-90 (116 delivered 1995 to 2000) and the MD-95, renamed the Boeing 717 after the 1997 merger[1](https://www.boeing.com/content/dam/boeing/boeingdotcom/history/pdf/Boeing_Products.pdf) |
| Last major U.S. operator | American Airlines retired its final MD-80 on September 4, 2019, after 36 years[6](https://news.aa.com/news/news-details/2019/The-End-of-an-Era-American-Says-Farewell-to-the-Super-80/default.aspx) |
## Design and development
[McDonnell Douglas](https://www.edgepedia.org/mcdonnell-douglas) began the program in the 1970s as a lengthened derivative of the DC-9-50 with a higher maximum take-off weight, a larger wing, and newer JT8D engines. Compared with the DC-9-50, the MD-80 has a longer fuselage, a wing of greater span, and higher-bypass JT8D-200 engines that lowered fuel consumption and noise.[2](https://goairports.org/aircraft/mcdonnell-douglas/md-80-super-80/) • [5](https://www.caac.gov.cn/GYMH/MHBK/HKQJS/201509/t20150923_1854.html) The name Super 80 reflected the planned 1980 entry into service; in July 1983 McDonnell Douglas officially redesignated the aircraft as the MD-80, dropping the DC commercial name.[2](https://goairports.org/aircraft/mcdonnell-douglas/md-80-super-80/) • [5](https://www.caac.gov.cn/GYMH/MHBK/HKQJS/201509/t20150923_1854.html)
The generic designation MD-80 covers five members of the family: the MD-81 (basic production model), the MD-82 with the more powerful JT8D-217 suited to hot-and-high operations, the long-range MD-83 with two additional 2,195-liter fuel tanks in the cargo hold giving a maximum range of 4,700 km, the shortened MD-87 (fuselage reduced by 5.35 m, 130 passengers in two classes, delivered from November 1987), and the MD-88 built to [Delta Air Lines](https://www.edgepedia.org/delta-air-lines)' requirements with more advanced cockpit displays and a flight management system.[5](https://www.caac.gov.cn/GYMH/MHBK/HKQJS/201509/t20150923_1854.html) • [7](https://www.forecastinternational.com/archive/disp_pdf.cfm?DACH_RECNO=1332) • [3](https://aerospaceweb.org/aircraft/jetliner/md80/)
## Engines and noise
Producing between 18,500 and 21,700 pounds of thrust, the JT8D-200 family debuted in 1980 and powers the MD-80 series exclusively.[4](https://www.rtx.com/en/prattwhitney/products/commercial-engines/jt8d/) Its development drew on concepts from a NASA-supported "Quiet Engine" program of the early 1970s, and with it the MD-80 became the first newly certified aircraft able to meet the strict Chapter 3 noise limits then being introduced.[8](https://www.md-80.com/mcdonnell-douglas-md-80/technik-der-md-80/triebwerke/) FAA noise data list the MD-80 at Stage 3 across its engine variants, with takeoff, sideline, and approach levels around 87 to 92, 94 to 97, and 93 EPNdB depending on weight and engine.[9](https://www.faa.gov/documentLibrary/media/Advisory_Circular/AC_36-1H.pdf?pubDate=20260502)
## Airline service
The MD-80 became one of the best-selling short- and medium-haul airliners of the 1980s and 1990s, competing with the [Boeing 737 Classic](https://www.edgepedia.org/boeing-737-classic) and later the [Airbus A320 family](https://www.edgepedia.org/airbus-a320-family).[5](https://www.caac.gov.cn/GYMH/MHBK/HKQJS/201509/t20150923_1854.html) • [2](https://goairports.org/aircraft/mcdonnell-douglas/md-80-super-80/) Deliveries peaked at almost 140 aircraft in 1991 before tailing off as McDonnell Douglas shifted to the MD-90.[10](https://aviationweek.com/air-transport/aircraft-propulsion/flight-friday-md-80-mad-dogs-struggle-survival-post-covid) Production also ran outside Long Beach: under a 1985 contract, Shanghai Aircraft Company assembled 25 MD-82s for Chinese civil aviation, completed in 1991, followed by an agreement for five more MD-82s and five MD-83s for export to the United States.[5](https://www.caac.gov.cn/GYMH/MHBK/HKQJS/201509/t20150923_1854.html)
**American Airlines** made the type its workhorse. It was the first large U.S.-based airline to introduce the aircraft, leasing its first 20 in 1982, and in March 1984 placed what was then the largest-ever order for commercial aircraft, 67 MD-80s with options for 100 more. The fleet grew further when American acquired [Trans World Airlines](https://www.edgepedia.org/trans-world-airlines) and its 104 MD-80s in 2001. At its 2002 peak, 362 MD-80s made up 44 percent of American's fleet, roughly one-third of all MD-80s ever produced, and the final revenue flight departed Dallas-Fort Worth on September 4, 2019.[11](https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2019-09-04/pilots-md-80-american-air-goodbye) • [6](https://news.aa.com/news/news-details/2019/The-End-of-an-Era-American-Says-Farewell-to-the-Super-80/default.aspx) The 26 aircraft retired that day had collectively carried more than 87 million passengers, by American's count.[12](https://www.smithsonianmag.com/air-space-magazine/super-80-gets-super-send-off-180973602/)
## Successors: MD-90 and Boeing 717
The MD-90, an advanced midsized medium-range airliner, was first delivered in February 1995 and entered service two months later. Its flight deck added an electronic flight instrument system, a full flight management system, an inertial reference system, and LED dot-matrix engine and system displays. Two versions entered production, and 116 were delivered between 1995 and 2000.[1](https://www.boeing.com/content/dam/boeing/boeingdotcom/history/pdf/Boeing_Products.pdf) The MD-95, designed to replace the DC-9-30, was launched in 1995 and renamed the [Boeing 717](https://www.edgepedia.org/boeing-717) after McDonnell Douglas and Boeing merged in 1997; Boeing delivered the final two of 156 717s on May 23, 2006.[1](https://www.boeing.com/content/dam/boeing/boeingdotcom/history/pdf/Boeing_Products.pdf)
## Alaska Airlines Flight 261
[Alaska Airlines Flight 261](https://www.edgepedia.org/alaska-airlines-flight-261), a McDonnell Douglas MD-83, went down in the [Pacific Ocean](https://www.edgepedia.org/pacific-ocean) roughly 2.7 miles north of Anacapa Island, California, on January 31, 2000, and none of the 88 aboard survived. The NTSB determined the probable cause was a loss of airplane pitch control from the in-flight failure of the acme nut threads in the horizontal stabilizer trim system jackscrew assembly, caused by excessive wear resulting from [Alaska Airlines](https://www.edgepedia.org/alaska-airlines)' insufficient lubrication of the jackscrew.[13](https://www.ntsb.gov/news/events/Documents/safety_report-SR0602.pdf) Contributing factors were the airline's extended lubrication and end-play check intervals, approved by the FAA, and the absence of a fail-safe mechanism to prevent the catastrophic effects of total acme nut thread loss.[14](https://www.faa.gov/lessons_learned/transport_airplane/accidents/N963AS) Laboratory tests found the unlubricated wear rate of aluminum-bronze specimens under normal flight-load pressures was roughly 10 times higher than for lubricated specimens.[15](https://www.faa.gov/sites/faa.gov/files/2022-11/NTSBReport.pdf) Lubrication and end-play check intervals for the MD-80 jackscrew assembly were subsequently shortened and made mandatory by airworthiness directive.[16](https://flightcrewfiles.com/alaska-airlines-261.html)
A later NTSB investigation of a 2017 MD-83 accident in [Ypsilanti, Michigan](https://www.edgepedia.org/ypsilanti-michigan) identified further safety issues for the DC-9/MD-80 series and 717, including the lack of a means for flight crews to verify before takeoff that the elevators are not jammed and the need for lower ground gust criteria for elevator inspections.[17](https://www-s.ntsb.gov/investigations/Pages/DCA17FA076.aspx)
## Retirement and remaining operators
Delta operated 47 MD-80s, almost a third of its fleet, before removing them in 2020 cost-cutting.[10](https://aviationweek.com/air-transport/aircraft-propulsion/flight-friday-md-80-mad-dogs-struggle-survival-post-covid) Remaining flying examples are concentrated in cargo and charter roles: Mexican cargo carrier Aeronaves TSM is the largest operator with 15 in service, and Iran has more than 40 in service.[10](https://aviationweek.com/air-transport/aircraft-propulsion/flight-friday-md-80-mad-dogs-struggle-survival-post-covid)
## References
1. [MD-80/MD-90 Historical Snapshot, Boeing](https://www.boeing.com/content/dam/boeing/boeingdotcom/history/pdf/Boeing_Products.pdf)
2. [McDonnell Douglas MD-80 (Super 80): History, Specifications, Codes & Photos, goairports.org](https://goairports.org/aircraft/mcdonnell-douglas/md-80-super-80/)
3. [Aerospaceweb.org Aircraft Museum: McDonnell Douglas MD-80](https://aerospaceweb.org/aircraft/jetliner/md80/)
4. [JT8D Engine, Pratt & Whitney](https://www.rtx.com/en/prattwhitney/products/commercial-engines/jt8d/)
5. [麦道（MD）-80系列介绍, Civil Aviation Administration of China](https://www.caac.gov.cn/GYMH/MHBK/HKQJS/201509/t20150923_1854.html)
6. [The End of an Era: American Says Farewell to the Super 80, American Airlines Newsroom](https://news.aa.com/news/news-details/2019/The-End-of-an-Era-American-Says-Farewell-to-the-Super-80/default.aspx)
7. [McDonnell Douglas/Boeing DC-9/MD-80 Series, Forecast International](https://www.forecastinternational.com/archive/disp_pdf.cfm?DACH_RECNO=1332)
8. [Das JT8D-200 von Pratt & Whitney, MD-80.com](https://www.md-80.com/mcdonnell-douglas-md-80/technik-der-md-80/triebwerke/)
9. [AC 36-1H, Noise Levels for U.S. Certificated and Foreign Aircraft, FAA](https://www.faa.gov/documentLibrary/media/Advisory_Circular/AC_36-1H.pdf?pubDate=20260502)
10. [Flight Friday: The MD-80 "Mad Dogs" Struggle For Survival Post-COVID, Aviation Week](https://aviationweek.com/air-transport/aircraft-propulsion/flight-friday-md-80-mad-dogs-struggle-survival-post-covid)
11. [Crews loved and hated the MD-80 jet, Los Angeles Times](https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2019-09-04/pilots-md-80-american-air-goodbye)
12. [Having Carried More Than 87 Million Passengers, the MD-80 Heads Into Retirement, Smithsonian Magazine](https://www.smithsonianmag.com/air-space-magazine/super-80-gets-super-send-off-180973602/)
13. [Safety Report on the Treatment of Safety-Critical Systems in Transport Airplanes, NTSB](https://www.ntsb.gov/news/events/Documents/safety_report-SR0602.pdf)
14. [McDonnell Douglas MD-83 (Alaska 261), FAA Lessons Learned](https://www.faa.gov/lessons_learned/transport_airplane/accidents/N963AS)
15. [Loss of Control and Impact with Pacific Ocean, Alaska Airlines Flight 261, NTSB AAR-02/01](https://www.faa.gov/sites/faa.gov/files/2022-11/NTSBReport.pdf)
16. [Alaska Airlines 261 Case File, Flight Crew Files](https://flightcrewfiles.com/alaska-airlines-261.html)
17. [DCA17FA076 Investigation Details, NTSB](https://www-s.ntsb.gov/investigations/Pages/DCA17FA076.aspx)
18. [Aerospace Notebook: MD-80 era winding down as fuel costs rise, Seattle Post-Intelligencer](https://www.seattlepi.com/business/article/aerospace-notebook-md-80-era-winding-down-as-1277527.php)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Technology and the built world › Transport and spaceflight › Aviation › Aircraft › Airliners and civil transport aircraft › Narrow-body jet airliners › Douglas/McDonnell Douglas DC-9 and MD-80/90 line*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 15, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026 · Last review: Oct 15, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license