DC-8-71/73 UNITED MODEL

The DC-8 is a medium to long range airliner manufactured by McDonnell Douglas between 1959 and 1972. It first flew on May 30 1958 in front of over 95,000 employees and spectators and flew for 2 Hours and 7 Minutes on the initial flight. The next test flight occurred on June 4, 1958 and between June and late August Ship One accumulated 72 hours of in-flight testing in a total of 22 flights. After a decade, the DC-8 established commercial transport world records for speed, altitude, distance and payload. As fuel efficiency and noise concerns became more important during the 1970s, many of these later models were equipped with new advanced turbofan engines and re-designated as the Super 71, Super 72, and Super 73, respectively.

The DC-8-71 version is similar to the Boeing 707 in performance and payload. The 71 model made its first flight in April 1982. While the DC-8-73 version was used in secret missions by the CIAs ""Air America"" program until it was disbanded in 1975. The planes look is kept simple to resemble cargo aircraft so as not to arouse suspicion. The DC-8-73 version of the DC-8 made its first flight on March 4 1982.

United Air Lines was considered the largest supporter and customer for the DC-8 from the very beginning, with their order of the DC-8-11, to the end, with the conversion of their fleet of DC-8-61s into DC-8-71s. Today, however, nearly all of the DC-8 Seventy aircraft have been converted into freighters and United Parcel Service now has the largest fleet DC-8s with a total of 49 DC-8-71s & DC-8-73s.