The McDonnell Douglas MD-11 is an American trijet wide-body airliner which was manufactured by McDonnell Douglas and later by Boeing. The MD-11 is the largest trijet ever built. Following DC-10 development studies, the MD-11 program was launched on December 30, 1986. Assembly of the first prototype began on March 9, 1988. Its maiden flight occurred on January 10, 1990, and it achieved Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) certification on November 8. The first delivery was to Finnair on December 7 and it entered service on December 20, 1990. It retains the basic trijet configuration of the DC-10 with updated General Electric CF6-80C2 or Pratt & Whitney PW4000 turbofan engines. Its wingspan is slightly larger than the DC-10 and it has winglets. Its maximum takeoff weight (MTOW) is increased by 14% to 630,500 lb (286 t). Its fuselage is stretched by 11% to 202 ft (61.6 m) to accommodate 298 passengers in three classes over a range of up to 7,130 nautical miles [nmi] (13,200 km; 8,210 mi). It features a glass cockpit that eliminates the need for a flight engineer. Originally positioned as a longer-range alternative to rival twinjets, the existing Boeing 767 and the upcoming Boeing 777 and Airbus A330, the MD-11 initially failed to meet its range and fuel burn targets, which impacted its sales despite a performance improvement program. McDonnell Douglas's financial struggles prevented further development of the MD-11 before it was acquired by Boeing in 1997; the unified company decided to terminate the MD-11 program after filling outstanding orders due to internal competition from Boeing's own 767 and 777. Only 200 units were built, of which roughly a quarter were freight aircraft, and production concluded in October 2000. In November 2014, KLM ended the world's last remaining MD-11 passenger flights. Many of the MD-11 passenger fleet were converted to freighter specification, and many remain in service as of 2026.
Development
Origins Although the MD-11 program was launched in 1986, McDonnell Douglas had started to search for a DC-10 derivative as early as 1976. Two versions were considered then: a DC-10-10 with a fuselage stretch of 40 feet (12 m) and a DC-10-30 stretched by 30 feet (9 m). The latter version would have been capable of transporting up to 340 passengers in a multi-class configuration, or 277 passengers and their luggage over 5,300 nautical miles (9,800 km; 6,100 mi). At the same time, the manufacturer was seeking to reduce wing and engine drag on the trijet. Another version of the aircraft was also envisaged, the "DC-10 global", aimed to counter the risks of loss of orders for the DC-10-30 that the Boeing 747SP and its range were causing. The DC-10 global would have incorporated more fuel tanks. While continuing their research for a new aircraft, McDonnell Douglas designated the program DC-10 Super 60, previously known for a short time as DC-10 Super 50. The Super 60 was to be an intercontinental aircraft incorporating many aerodynamic improvements in the wings, and a fuselage lengthened by 26 feet 8 inches (8.13 m) to allow for up to 350 passengers to be seated in a mixed-class layout, compared to 275 in the same configuration of the DC-10. Following more refinements, in 1979 the DC-10 Super 60 was proposed in three distinct versions like the DC-8. The DC-10-61 was designed to be a high-capacity medium-range aircraft. It would have a fuselage stretch of 40 feet (12 m) over the earlier DC-10 models, enabling it to carry 390 passengers in a mixed class or 550 passengers in an all-economy layout, similar to Boeing's later 777-300 and Airbus A340-600. Like the DC-8, the series 62 was proposed for long-range routes. It would feature a more modest fuselage stretch of 26 ft 7 in (8.10 m), along with an increased wingspan and fuel capacity. It would be capable of carrying up to 350 passengers (mixed class) or 440 passengers (all-economy), similar to the later Boeing 777-200 or the Airbus A330-300/A340-300/500. Finally, the series 63 would have incorporated the same fuselage as the DC-10-61 as well as the larger wing of the -62. After high-profile accidents in the 1970s, such as Turkish Airlines Flight 981 and American Airlines Flight 191, the trijet's reputation was seriously damaged by doubts regarding its structural integrity. For these reasons, and due to a downturn in the airline industry, all work on the Super 60 was stopped.
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