RetroWings have recently previewed their newest project, DC-9 for X-Plane 12. RetroWings is a relatively new development group, made by developers from TorqueSim and LES. The first project they began working on was a Metroliner SA227, and they made significant progress (You can check their discord server for more info).

The Douglas DC-9 was an American-made narrow-body short-haul aircraft, produced between 1965 and 1982. It was introduced by Delta in 1965, and shortly after, it became the world’s best-selling airliner. From 1965 until 1976, more than 720 aircraft were delivered, which was more than double the number of its competitors. 

Unfortunately, after the Boeing 737 entered the market, it was overtaken as the best-selling airliner. Due to higher unit cost than estimated, the DC-9 turned out to be sold at a loss, and the economics negatively impacted Douglas. In 1967, Douglas merged with McDonnell Aircraft and the DC-9 was renamed to McDonnell Douglas DC-9. 

However, the first generation of DC-9 proved to be a success, as it was (and still is!) one of the longest-lasting aircraft in both production and operation. It was later developed into MD-80, MD-90 and Boeing 717. In total, the DC-9 family was produced in 2441 units, 976 DC-9s, 1078 MD-80s, 116 MD-90s, and 155 Boeing 717s. 

RetroWings is developing the DC-9-32 version, which had an increased MTOW, and interestingly enough, did not feature GPS or FMS originally. The developers announced that they may develop a device that would help the pilots, especially when flying online. Currently, we have no information about the release date or pricing, but as always Threshold will keep you updated!

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