Saying goodbye to an old friend........American donates two McDonnell Douglas MD-80 aircraft

After retiring the last of its McDonnell Douglas MD-80 fleet to Roswell, New Mexico, in early September 2019, American is donating the last two MD-80 aircraft to CareerTech in Oklahoma City, and Lewis University in Romeoville, Illinois. The airline will ferry the first of the donated planes to Will Rogers World Airport (OKC) today. The other aircraft will be ferried to Lewis University Airport (LOT) Friday.

The donations to the two schools provide aviation maintenance students the opportunity to gain practical experience by working on a commercial aircraft.

“As we look to the future of American’s Tech Ops workforce, it’s important to train the next generation of aviation maintenance students so we have a development pipeline for skilled technicians,” said Kevin Brickner, Senior Vice President of Technical Operations for American. “Just like the MD-80 inspired our own team members in their career development for more than 35 years, the aircraft will do the same for students for years to come. We are proud to partner with CareerTech and Lewis University on this donation.”

American Airlines Donates Last 2 McDonnell Douglas MD-80 Aircraft

After retiring the last of its McDonnell Douglas MD-80 fleet to Roswell, New Mexico, in early September 2019, American is donating the last two MD-80 aircraft to CareerTech in Oklahoma City, and Lewis University in Romeoville, Illinois. The airline will ferry the first of the donated planes to Will Rogers World Airport (OKC) today. The other aircraft will be ferried to Lewis University Airport (LOT) Friday.

The donations to the two schools provide aviation maintenance students the opportunity to gain practical experience by working on a commercial aircraft.

“As we look to the future of American’s Tech Ops workforce, it’s important to train the next generation of aviation maintenance students so we have a development pipeline for skilled technicians,” said Kevin Brickner, Senior Vice President of Technical Operations for American. “Just like the MD-80 inspired our own team members in their career development for more than 35 years, the aircraft will do the same for students for years to come. We are proud to partner with CareerTech and Lewis University on this donation.”

The End of an Era: American Says Farewell to the Super 80

It has been a long time coming, a little longer than expected thanks to the grounding of the Boeing 737 Max, but the now the final McDonnell Douglas MD-80 retired form the American Airlines fleet today.  Most of the venerable old aircraft after making their final journies to the aircraft graveyard in  Roswell, New Mexico (ROW). 

Send off from RDU airport                   Photo RDU  Int Airport

The Super 80, was the workhorse of the American's fleet throughout the 1980s and beyond.

The Super 80 era began at American in May 1983 with three aircraft serving six cities — Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW); Detroit (DTW); New York City (LGA); Memphis, Tennessee (MEM); Nashville, Tennessee (BNA); and Ontario, California (ONT). When introduced, the MD-80 was one of the most fuel-efficient commercial aeroplanes in the sky. American was the first of the large U.S.-based airlines to introduce the aircraft to its fleet and, by 2003, was operating 362 of the iconic planes, representing approximately one-third of all MD-80s ever produced by McDonnell Douglas.

Leaving STL                                      Photo STL airport

Faithful MD-80 customer says goodbye to iconic aircraft

 McDonnell Douglas MD-80

There are often tangible things that our brains associate with memories. For some, it’s the tune of a popular song that was playing during a first kiss, the scent of a home-cooked meal always served by a favourite relative or the familiar feel of the pages of a book that gets read over and over again.

For William “Hutch” Pegler, that thing is an aeroplane — the McDonnell Douglas MD-80.

Hutch began a career in banking 25 years ago this month. It’s a career that he loves. It’s taken him all over the world and led to 1.8 million lifetime miles on American Airlines. The MD-80 was there for him from the start.

“To me this plane represents an era where I was building my career. All of the hours I spent on that bird going everywhere, at least twice a week from 1994 to the early 2000s,” Hutch said. “So seeing it go, it makes me a little nostalgic about where I am now, celebrating 25 years in the banking industry. Those were my formative years and a really important time in my life and in my career.”

American Airlines Announces Schedule of Final MD-80 Revenue Flights

September 4th this year will be a very sad day for some aircraft enthusiasts, spotters and American Airlines staff, as that is the date the carrier will retire its last 26 McDonnell Douglas MD-80 aircraft. 

The MD-80, also known as the Super 80, was the workhorse of the airline’s fleet throughout the 1980s and beyond, providing customers and team members with heartfelt memories on adventures ranging from family vacations to key business trips. It’s a bittersweet but well-earned retirement as American celebrates the aircraft’s history while modernizing its fleet.

Below is the schedule of the final revenue flights on the “Mad Dog” before their desert farewell ferry flights to Roswell, New Mexico (ROW). All schedules are subject to change based on operational needs.