Air Turkey McDonnell Douglas MD-11

Up until the late 1980s, Air Turkey had been a major operator of McDonnell Douglas' DC-10 lineup, operating the -10, -30, and -40 variants. The last Air Turkey DC-10 (a -40) took off from Istanbul on 19 May 1989 bound for London as TY1. It would then return as TY2 later that day before being retired from the fleet.

However, Air Turkey weren't done just yet with McDonnell Douglas. In fact, in September(ish, was never actually confirmed when) 1986, they ordered 7 of the new MD-11, however this order was not made public until 30 December 1986 when the MD-11 was officially revealed to the public. Air Turkey was one of a few airlines who launched the MD-11. The first MD-11 would arrive on 12 September 1991 after a flight from Long Beach to Istanbul via New York (Newark) and London Heathrow.

Unfortunately, the MD-11 did not have as much range as Air Turkey was hoping for. They wanted to send the MD-11s to the Americas, specifically South America, but ended up changing those routes to the 747, albeit with less routes than anticipated. The MD-11s would instead be sent to Europe, East Asia, and the Middle East.

However, in the 90s, new efficient widebodies with 2 engines instead of 3 or 4 like the A330 and 777 (even the 767) were making the MD-11 look pretty outdated. Many airlines were retiring their ones by the turn of the century, some only a decade after receiving them brand new. Air Turkey was actually one of the last airlines to retire the MD-11, retiring it in 2007. The final flight took place on 12 September 2007, exactly 16 years after they arrived for the first time in the Air Turkey fleet, as TY1 Istanbul-London Heathrow, and TY2 London Heathrow-Istanbul, the same as the DC-10s it succeeded. Out of the 7, 4 were converted into freighters, 2 were scrapped, and 1 remains in storage in Victorville. this aircraft, TC-MDC, has no plans to be scrapped just yet, but also no plans to be put back into service either. It still bears the 1985-2003 livery without titles or logos.
The MD-11s were some of the most beloved aircraft in the Air Turkey fleet, and it was indeed a sad sight to see the MD-11 depart Istanbul for the final time bound for Victorville, tears and all were seen that day.

TC-MDA: 1991 McDonnell Douglas MD-11 | Air Turkey | Currently: Flying as a freighter for Pan-Atlantic Airways Cargo as N121PQ