Chatted with the Prof a bit about this last night with respect to American Airlines, but it looks like Alaska’s also grounding some MD-80s. for testing
The bad news, is that Alaska is grounding some flights. The good news is that Alaska apparently ony has 9 — that’s right, nine — MD-80s left in their fleet. I hate the MD-80, and love the cushy new 737s Alaska’s been rolling out, so this is good news for me.
Also, while scouring the archives for my previous rants on the MD-80, I uncovered this post, where I noted that American is rushing to get more 737s in the air, because they consume 25% less fuel than the MD-80.
The only thing I can say in defense of the MD-80 is that the level of ambient noise in the cabin is much, much lower than in the 737 series. I’ve always written that off to having the engines mounted at the rear of the aircraft rather than under the wings.
Okay, yeah, I’ll give you that. Definitely quieter.
What I really dislike is the tiny overhead compartments that don’t fit modern wheeled carry-ons without turning them sideways and filling up the entire compartment.
And I’m scared to death of the jackscrew.
I’ll grant the tiny overhead compartments are a problem, but another advantage the MD models have over the majority of the older 737s-747s (haven’t used a newer one) is the lack of fixed metal armrests in the middle of the coach area. In execution, they’re a lot like a bench of bucket seats. Bucket seats designed for people whose hips are narrower than their shoulders.
Those of us with healthier hips end up in excruciating pain for the duration of a flight.