Douglas DC - 8 The Douglas DC - 8 ( also known as the McDonnell Douglas DC - 8 ) is a four - engine long range narrow - body jet airliner built from 1958 to 1972 by the Douglas Aircraft Company . Launched after the competing Boeing 707 , the DC - 8 nevertheless kept Douglas in a strong position in the airliner market , and remained in production until 1972 when it began to be superseded by larger wide - body designs , including the Boeing 747 , McDonnell Douglas DC - 10 and Lockheed L - 1011 TriStar . The DC - 8 ' s design allowed it to hold slightly more cargo than the 707 and some re - engined DC - 8s are still in use as freighters . Development . Background . After World War II Douglas had a commanding position in the commercial aircraft market . Boeing had pointed the way to the modern all - metal airliner in 1933 with the 247 , but Douglas , more than any other company , made commercial air travel a reality . Douglas produced a succession of piston - engined aircraft ( DC - 2 , DC - 3 , DC - 4 , DC - 5 , DC - 6 , and DC - 7 ) through the 1930s , 1940s and 1950s . When de Havilland flew the first jet airliner , the Comet , in 1949 , Douglas felt no need to rush into anything new . Their U . S . competitors at Lockheed and Convair felt the same way : that there would be a gradual switch from piston engines to turbines , and that the switch would be to the more fuel - efficient turboprop engines rather than pure jets . All three companies were working on a new generation of piston - engined designs , with an eye to turboprop conversion in the future . De Havilland ' s pioneering Comet entered airline service in 1952 . Initially it was a success , but it was grounded after several fatal crashes in 1953 and 1954 . The cause of the Comet crashes had nothing to do with jet engines ; it was a rapid metal fatigue failure brought on by cycling the high stresses in corners of the near - square windows from pressurizing the cabin to high altitudes and back . The understanding of metal fatigue that the Comet investigation produced would play a vital part in the good safety record of later types like the DC - 8 . In 1952 Douglas remained the most successful of the commercial aircraft manufacturers . They had almost 300 orders on hand for the piston - engined DC - 6 and its successor , the DC - 7 , which had yet to fly . The Comet disasters , and the airlines ' subsequent lack of interest in jets , seemed to show the wisdom of their staying with propeller - driven aircraft . Competition . Boeing took the bold step of starting to plan a pure - jet airliner in as early as 1949 . Boeing ' s military arm had gained experience with large , long - range jets through the B - 47 Stratojet ( first flight 1947 ) and the B - 52 Stratofortress ( 1952 ) . With thousands of jet bombers on order or in service , Boeing had developed a close relationship with the US Air Force ' s Strategic Air Command ( SAC ) . Boeing also supplied the SAC ' s refueling aircraft , the piston - engined KC - 97 Stratotanker s , but these were too slow and low flying to easily work with the new jet bombers . The B - 52 , in particular , had to descend from its cruising altitude and then slow almost to stall speed to work with the KC - 97 , even when the latter was augmented with jet engines to boost its speed . Believing that a requirement for a jet - powered tanker was a certainty , Boeing started work on a new jet aircraft for this role that could be adapted into an airliner . As an airliner it would have similar seating capacity to the Comet , but its swept wing would give it higher cruising speed and better range . First presented in 1950 as the Model 473 - 60C , Boeing failed to generate any interest at the airlines . Boeing remained convinced that the project was worthwhile , and decided to press ahead with a prototype , the " Dash - 80 " . After spending $ 16 million of their own money on construction , the Dash - 80 rolled out on May 15 , 1954 , and flew the next month . Boeing ' s plans became obvious , despite the " code name " intended to hide its purpose . Design . Douglas secretly began jet transport project definition studies in mid - 1952 . By mid - 1953 these had developed into a form similar to the final DC - 8 ; an 80 - seat , low - wing aircraft with four Pratt & Whitney JT3C turbojet engines , 30° wing sweep , and an internal cabin diameter of to allow five abreast seating . Maximum weight was to be 95 tons ( 86 tonnes ) , and range was estimated to be about . Douglas remained lukewarm about the jet airliner project , but believed that the Air Force tanker contract would go to two companies for two different aircraft , as several USAF transport contracts in the past had done . In May 1954 , the USAF circulated its requirement for 800 jet tankers to Boeing , Douglas , Convair , Fairchild , Lockheed , and Martin . Boeing was just two months away from having their prototype in the air . Just four months after issuing the tanker requirement , the USAF ordered the first 29 KC - 135 s from Boeing . Besides Boeing ' s ability to provide a jet tanker promptly , the flying - boom air - to - air refueling system was also a Boeing product from the KC - 97 : developing the KC - 135 had been a safe bet . Donald Douglas was shocked by the rapidity of the decision which , he said , had been made before the competing companies even had time to complete their bids . He protested to Washington , but without success . Having started on the DC - 8 project , Douglas decided that it was better to press on than give up . Consultations with the airlines resulted in a number of changes : the fuselage was widened by to allow six - abreast seating . This led to larger wings and tail surfaces and a longer fuselage . The DC - 8 was announced in July 1955 . Four versions were offered to begin with , all with the same long airframe with a wingspan , but varying in engines and fuel capacity , and with maximum weights of about 120 – 130 tons ( 109 – 118 tonnes ) . Douglas steadfastly refused to offer different fuselage sizes . The maiden flight was planned for December 1957 , with entry into revenue service in 1959 . Well aware that they were lagging behind Boeing , Douglas began a major push to market the product . First orders . Douglas ' previous thinking about the airliner market seemed to be coming true ; the transition to turbine powered looked likely to be one to turboprops rather than turbojets . The pioneering 40 – 60 - seat Vickers Viscount was in service and proving popular with passengers and airlines : it was faster , quieter and more comfortable than piston - engined types . Another British rival was the 90 - seat Bristol Britannia , and Douglas ' s main rival in the large airliner market , Lockheed , had committed to the short / medium range 80 – 100 - seat turboprop Electra , with a launch order from American Airlines for 35 and other orders flowing in . Meanwhile the Comet remained grounded , the French 90 - passenger twin jet Sud Aviation Caravelle prototype had just flown for the first time , and the 707 was not expected to be available until late 1958 . The major airlines were reluctant to commit themselves to the huge financial and technical challenge of jet aircraft . But no one could afford " not " to buy jets if their competitors did . There the matter rested until October 1955 , when Pan American placed simultaneous orders with Boeing for 20 707s and Douglas for 25 DC - 8s . To buy one expensive and untried jet - powered aircraft type was brave : to buy both was at the time , unheard of . In the closing months of 1955 , other airlines rushed to follow suit : Air France , American , Braniff , Continental and Sabena ordered 707s ; United , National , KLM , Eastern , JAL and SAS chose the DC - 8 . In 1956 Air India , BOAC , Lufthansa , Qantas and TWA added over 50 to the 707 order book , while Douglas sold 22 DC - 8s to Delta , Swissair , TAI , Trans Canada and UAT . By the start of 1958 , Douglas had sold 133 DC - 8s compared to Boeing ' s 150 707s . Basic price of a JT4 powered " domestic " version of the DC - 8 in 1960 was around £1 . 95 million ( US $ 5 . 46 million ) . Production and testing . The first DC - 8 " N8008D " was rolled out of the new factory at Long Beach on 9 April 1958 and flew for the first time , in Series 10 form , on 30 May for two hours seven minutes with the crew being led by A . G . Heimerdinger . Later that year an enlarged version of the Comet finally returned to service , but too late to take a substantial portion of the market : de Havilland had just 25 orders . In August Boeing had begun delivering 707s to Pan Am . Douglas made a massive effort to close the gap with Boeing , using no less than ten aircraft for flight testing to achieve FAA certification for the first of the many DC - 8 variants in August 1959 . Much had needed to be done : the original air brakes on the lower rear fuselage were found ineffective and were deleted as engine thrust reversers had become available ; unique leading - edge slots were added to improve low - speed lift ; the prototype was 25 kn ( 46 km / h ) short of its promised cruising speed and a new , slightly larger wingtip had to be developed to reduce drag . In addition , a recontoured wing leading edge was later developed that extended the chord 4 % and reduced drag at high Mach numbers . The DC - 8 entered service with Delta Air Lines on September 18 , 1959 with United entering service later the same day . By March 1960 Douglas had reached their planned production rate of eight DC - 8s a month . Despite the large number of DC - 8 early models available , all used the same basic airframe , differing only in engines , weights and details . In contrast , Boeing ' s rival 707 range offered several fuselage lengths and two wingspans : the original 707 - 120 , a version that sacrificed space to gain longer range , and the stretched 707 - 320 , which at overall had more cabin space than the DC - 8 . Douglas ' refusal to offer different fuselage sizes made it less adaptable and forced Delta and United to look elsewhere for short / medium range types . Delta ordered Convair 880s but United went for the newly developed lightweight 707 - 020 but prevailed on Boeing to rename the new variant the " 720 " in case people thought they were dissatisfied with the DC - 8 . Significantly , Pan Am never reordered the DC - 8 and Douglas gradually lost market share to Boeing . After an excellent start , 1962 DC - 8 sales dropped to just 26 , followed by 21 in 1963 and 14 in ' 64 , and most of these were for the Jet Trader rather than the more prestigious passenger versions . In 1967 , Douglas merged with McDonnell Aircraft Corporation to become McDonnell Douglas ( MDC ) . On August 21 , 1961 a Douglas DC - 8 broke the sound barrier at Mach 1 . 012 ( 660 mph / 1 , 062 km / h ) while in a controlled dive through and maintained that speed , for 16 seconds . The flight was to collect data on a new leading - edge design for the wing , and while doing so , this DC - 8 became the first civilian jet - and the first jet airliner - to make a supersonic flight . The aircraft was a DC - 8 - 43 later delivered to Canadian Pacific Air Lines as CF - CPG . The aircraft , crewed by Captain William Magruder , First Officer Paul Patten , Flight Engineer Joseph Tomich and Flight Test Engineer Richard Edwards , took off from Edwards Air Force Base in California , and was accompanied to altitude by an F - 104 flown by Chuck Yeager . Further developments . In April 1965 , Douglas announced belated fuselage stretches for the DC - 8 with three new models known as the " Super Sixties " . The DC - 8 program had been in danger of closing with fewer than 300 aircraft sold , but the Super Sixties brought fresh life to it . By the time production ceased in 1972 , 262 of the stretched DC - 8s had been made . With the ability to seat 269 passengers , the DC - 8 Series 61 and 63 had the largest passenger - carrying capacity available . That remained so until the Boeing 747 arrived in 1970 . All the earlier jetliners were noisy by modern standards . Increasing traffic densities and changing public attitudes led to complaints about aircraft noise and moves to introduce restrictions . As early as 1966 the New York Port Authority expressed concern about the noise to be expected from the then still unbuilt DC - 8 - 61 , and operators had to agree to operate it from New York at lower weights to reduce noise . By the early 1970s , legislation for aircraft noise standards was being introduced in many countries , and the 60 Series DC - 8s were particularly at risk of being banned from major airports . In the early 1970s several airlines approached McDonnell Douglas for noise reduction modifications to the DC - 8 but nothing was done . Third parties had developed aftermarket hushkits but there was no real move to keep the DC - 8 in service . Finally , in 1975 , General Electric began discussions with major airlines with a view to fitting the new and vastly quieter Franco - American CFM56 engine to both DC - 8s and 707s . MDC remained reluctant but eventually came on board in the late 1970s and helped develop the Series 70 . The Super Seventies were a great success : roughly 70 % quieter than the 60 - Series and , at the time of their introduction , the world ' s quietest four - engined airliner . As well as being quieter and more powerful , the CFM56 was roughly 20 % more fuel efficient than the JT3D , which reduced operating costs and extended the range . By 2002 , of the 1 , 032 707s and 720s manufactured for commercial use , just 80 remained in service — though many of those 707s were converted for USAF use , either in service or for spare parts . Of the 556 DC - 8s made , around 200 were still in commercial service in 2002 , including about 25 50 - Series , 82 of the stretched 60 - Series , and 96 out of the 110 re - engined 70 - Series . Most of the surviving DC - 8s are now used as freighters . In May 2009 , 97 DC - 8s were in service following UPS ' s decision to retire their remaining fleet of 44 . Variants . Series 10 . For domestic use , powered by 13 , 500 lb ( 60 . 5 kN ) Pratt & Whitney JT3C - 6 turbojets with water injection . The initial DC - 8 - 11 model had the original , high - drag wingtips and all were converted to DC - 8 - 12 standard . The DC - 8 - 12 had the new wingtips and leading - edge slots , 80 inches long between the engines on each wing and 34 inches long inboard of the inner engines . These unique devices were covered by doors on the upper and lower wing surfaces that opened for low speed flight and closed for cruise . The maximum weight increased from . 28 DC - 8 - 10s were built . This model was originally named " DC - 8A " until the series 30 was introduced . 29 built , 22 for United and 6 for Delta , plus the prototype . By the mid sixties United had converted 15 of its 20 surviving aircraft to DC - 8 - 20 standard and the other 5 to - 50s . Delta converted its 6 to DC - 8 - 50s . Series 20 . Higher - powered 15 , 800 lb ( 70 . 8 kN ) thrust Pratt & Whitney JT4A - 3 turbojets ( without water injection ) allowed a weight increase to . 34 DC - 8 - 20s were built plus 15 converted DC - 8 - 10s . This model was originally named " DC - 8B " but was renamed when the series 30 was introduced . Series 30 . For intercontinental routes , the three Series 30 variants combined JT4A engines with a one - third increase in fuel capacity and strengthened fuselage and landing gear . The DC - 8 - 31 was certified in March 1960 with 16 , 800 lb ( 75 . 2 kN ) JT4A - 9 engines for maximum take off weight . The DC - 8 - 32 was similar but allowed weight . The DC - 8 - 33 of November 1960 substituted 17 , 500 lb ( 78 . 4 kN ) JT4A - 11 turbojets , a modification to the flap linkage to allow a 1 . 5° setting for more efficient cruise , stronger landing gear , and maximum weight . Many - 31 and - 32 DC - 8s were upgraded to this standard . A total of 57 DC - 8 - 30s were produced . Series 40 . The DC - 8 - 40 was essentially the - 30 but with 17 , 500 lb ( 78 . 4 kN ) Rolls - Royce Conway 509 turbofans for better efficiency , less noise and less smoke . The Conway was an improvement over the turbojets that preceded it , but the Series 40 sold poorly because of the traditional reluctance of U . S . airlines to buy a foreign product and because the still more advanced Pratt & Whitney JT3D turbofan was due in early 1961 . The DC - 8 - 41 and DC - 8 - 42 had weights of and respectively , The DC - 8 - 43 had the 1 . 5° flap setting of the - 33 and introduced a 4 % leading edge wing extension to reduce drag and increase fuel capacity slightly – the new wing improved range by 8 % , lifting capacity by 3 . 3 tons ( 3 tonnes ) , and cruising speed by better than . It was used on all later DC - 8s . The first DC - 8 - 40 was delivered in 1960 ; 32 were built . Series 50 . The definitive short - fuselage DC - 8 with the same engine that powered the vast majority of 707s , the JT3D . Fourteen earlier DC - 8s were converted to this standard . All but the - 55 were certified in 1961 . The DC - 8 - 51 , DC - 8 - 52 and DC - 8 - 53 all had 17 , 000 lb ( 76 . 1 kN ) JT3D - 1 or 18 , 000 lb ( 80 . 6 kN ) JT3D - 3B engines , varying mainly in their weights : , and respectively . The DC - 8 - 55 arrived in June 1964 , retaining the JT3D - 3B engines but with strengthened structure from the freighter versions and maximum weight . 88 DC - 8 - 50s were built plus the 14 converted from Series 10 / 30 . Operators . A total of 22 DC - 8s ( all variants ) were in service with the following operators : Accidents and incidents . As of May 2011 , the DC - 8 had been involved in 140 incidents , including 83 hull - loss accidents , with 2 , 256 fatalities . The DC - 8 has been in 46 hijackings involving 2 fatalities . Aircraft on display . The following museums have DC - 8s on display or in storage : Specifications . Sources :