1990's

1990’s

The 1990’s was not an innovative decade. Boeing starting using fly-by-wire, and they developed the 777. Airbus developed the A330 and A340. McDonnell Douglas built MD-11, one of the only aircraft developed in the 90’s that didn’t have fly-by-wire. All of the major manufacturers started work on a new large airplane in the mid 90’s but all were abandoned with the notable exception being the A380. In 1997, McDonnell Douglas became a part of Boeing.

McDonnell Douglas MD-11

McDonnell Douglas wanted to build a follower of the DC-10 so they started design a similar plane. The fuselage was stretched, the glass cockpit was advanced and the passenger capacity was increased. The MD-11 sold few of the jets but this jet was known as a safe and reliable airliner. McDonnell Douglas was absorbed into Boeing in 1997 but MD-11’s continued to be built by Boeing.

Boeing 777

When the 757 and 767 were introduced, a third aircraft was supposed to be built, the 777. The original design was a trijet to compete with the DC-10 and L-1011. However, DC-10’s and L-1011’s were almost at retirement. To replace them, Airbus started A330 and A340 work, while McDonnell Douglas built the MD-11, an improved DC-10. Because of the gap in size between the 767 and the 747, Boeing designed a new 777, and dropped the trijet project. The 777 soon became a very safe airliner.

Airbus A330/A340

The A330 was similar to the A300, but it received a new cockpit with fly-by-wire. The A340 was similar but had four engines. At the time, the A340 was more fuel efficiency than twinjets. Both planes had amazing safety records and are still being produced today.

Boeing 717

Boeing built the last developed DC-9: the 717. The 717 wasn’t a success in terms of sales. This plane is often forgotten and was never well known.

Boeing NLA, McDonnell Douglas MD-12, Airbus A380

Boeing was planning on making the Boeing NLA (New Large Airplane) to replace the ageing 747. However, the decision was made to drop the project. McDonnell Douglas reportedly started work on the MD-12, a large double decker the size of the 747. Initially, the plan was to build a more sophisticated MD-11 with a stretched fuselage. The press found that McDonnell Douglas didn’t have the funding to build this plane. Also, no solid orders were made. Airbus decided to wait until the 00’s before building the A380.

The unbuilt MD-12