Boeing (McDonnell Douglas) MD-11ER

Type (Muster)
Long-range, high-capacity airliner (Langstrecken-Verkehrsflugzeug)

Country (Land)
USA

Manufacturer (Hersteller)
Boeing (Douglas Products Division)
3855 Lakewood Boulevard
Long Beach, California 90846
USA

Phone: 001-496/7474
Fax: 001-496/8720

General (Allgemeine Angaben)
Crew (Besatzung): 2 plus cabin attendants
Passengers (Passagiere): Typical two-class seating for 323 (34 first plus 289 economy) or three-class layout for 298 (16 first, 56 business and 226 economy). In a charter arrengement, the limit is 409.
Freight (Fracht): Lower deck holds have a volume of 194 cu m

Power plant (Antrieb): 3 x high-bypass turbofans, either Pratt & Whitney PW4460 or PW4462 or General Electric CF6-80C2D1F
Thrust (Schub): 3 x 267 kN (60000 lbs) for PW4460, or 276 kN (62000 lbs) for PW4462 or 274 kN (61500 lbs) for CF6-80

Dimensions (Abmessungen)
Length (Länge): 61,62 m (with GE engines) or 61,24 m (with Pratt engines)
Height (Höhe): 17,60 m
Fuselage diameter (Rumpfdurchmesser): 6,02 m
Span (Spannweite): 51,97 m over winglets
Wing area (Flügelfläche): 338,9 sq m

Cabin length (Kabinenlänge): 46,51 m
Cabin width (Kabinenbreite): 5,71 m
Cabin height (Kabinenhöhe): 2,41 m

Weights (Massen)
Operating weight empty (Einsatz-Leermasse): 130935 kg
Payload (Nutzlast): 51272 kg
Fuel (Kraftstoff): 157712 litres including tanks in cargo hold
Max. zero fuel weight (Max. Masse ohne Kraftstoff): 181435 kg
Max. take-off weigth (Max. Startmasse): 273314 kg or 285990 kg as an option
Max. landing weight (Max. Landemasse): 195040 kg

Performance (Flugleistungen)
Max. level speed (Höchstgeschwindigkeit): Mach 0.87 / 945 km/h
Take-off field length (Startstrecke): 3115 m
Landing field length, sea level (Landestrecke): 2118 m
Range (Reichweite): 13190 km

Customers (Kunden)
As of April 30, 1998, 178 MD-11s had been delivered in four versions: passenger; freighter; convertible freighter; and "combi.". Among the users are:

Alitalia: 8
American Airlines: 14
China Airlines: 4
China Eastern Airlines: 5
City Bird 1
Delta Air Lines: 14
EVA Air: 3
Finnair: 4
Garuda Indonesia: 8
Japan Air Lines: 10
KLM: 9
Korean Air: 3
LTU: 4
Martinair Holland: 4
Swissair: 15
Thai Airways International: 4
VARIG: 9
VASP: 9
World Airways: 8

Competition (Konkurrenz)
Airbus A330
Airbus A340
Boeing 777

Remarks (Bemerkungen)
The MD-11 is based on the DC-10, but featuring

a stretched fuselage (6,68 m longer than before)
more wingspan with winglets
refined aerofoils on the wing and tailplane
new engines
extensive use of composites on parts like flaps etc.
two-crew, all-digital glass cockpit

The aim was to increase capacity, range (plus 27b per cent) and decrese operating cost by over a quarter.
The MD-11 was first revealed at the Paris Air Show in the summer of 1995. British Caledonian placed the first order in December 1986, followed by Mitsui and SAS. Formal commitment to the programme came on 29 December 1986, when 92 commitments form 12 customers had been received, among them 52 firm orders.
Assembly of the MD-11 began on March 9, 1988, but delays in engineering led to a first flight (of an MD-11F) not before January 10, 1990. Five aircraft wer involved in the flight test programme. FAA certification was achieved by November 8 that year.
First to receive the MD-11 was Finnair, which accepted its aircraft on November 29, 1990 and flew the first revenue service on December 20. At that time, there were 174 orders in the books, plus an equal amount of commitments.
It soon became apparent that the MD-11 failed to meet its payload/range guarantees, and McDonnell Douglas hat to start an extensive modification programme to recover some of the deficiencies. A three phase drag-reduction programme was implemented, as well as changes to the engines to cut fuel burn.
Although external dimensions remain unchanged, the aircraft is available in several different variants:

MD-11 Combi: This allows flexible arrangements of 168 to 238 passengers on the main deck, plus four to ten pallets, separated by a crashworthy partition. Loading is through a corgo door on the rear port side, measuring 4.06 x 2,59 m. Maximum revenue cargo capacity here is 40825 kg.
MD-11F: Pure freighter version, first ordered by FedEx
MD-11CF: Convertible freighter, launched in August 1991 with an order from Martinair Holland. This variant has its cargo door (3,56 x 2,59 m) on the forward port side. Maximum cargo load is 89560 kg.
MD-11ER: Extended range model, launched in 1994. It has a 11583 litre auxiliary fuel tank in the lower cargo compartment to boost range by at least 890 km. Launch customers World Airways and Garuda Indonesia took delivery of their first MD-11Ers on March 11 and December 19, 1996 respectively.

After the take-over of McDonnell Douglas by Boeing, the MD-11 programme was subjected to a thorough examination, with the cargo version being the best hope for future sales. After months of assessing future sales prospects for the MD-11, Boeing Commercial Airplane Group (BCAG) announced on 3 June 1998 that it has determined that there is not sufficient market demand to warrant continued production beyond the current order base. Consequently, MD-11 production will be phased out with the delivery of orders now on hand, with the last delivery scheduled for February 2000.

Last updated 20 July 1998

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