The McDonnell Douglas MD-11 is known for many things, including being one of the world’s final trijets still in common freighter service in the United States. One of the aircraft’s more notable characteristics is its uncommonly high landing speed. It is high, not only for new aircraft, but also for older commercial aircraft. This higher landing speed may be impressive to watch, but it also makes the aircraft more difficult to operate.

The MD-11 made world news on November 4 as the left engine of UPS Airlines Flight 2976 broke away from the wing, with the aircraft then crashing and burning on impact. The FAA subsequently grounded all MD-11 aircraft, along with any MD-10/DC-10s still in operation. As of the time of writing, all of UPS’s fleet of 27 MD-11s remains grounded.

Preliminary Notes On Landing Speed

As with many things aviation, specifics come into place that influence exact numbers. The Reference Landing Speed (VREF), also the final approach speed, depends on the aircraft’s weight and other factors. These factors include the actual landing weight, the flap/gear selection, the aircraft’s center of gravity, and the presence of wind and/or gusts. When comparing different aircraft types’ landing speeds, it is important to use a representative range.

The aircraft’s lift must equal its weight to remain airborne on approach. A greater weight increases the stall speed. This means that the heavier an aircraft is, the faster it needs to fly. The relationship is not linear; stall speed rises with the square root of the weight. So a 10% increase in weight will increase the stall speed by around 5%.

Another factor is the air density; air is denser at sea level and thinner at higher elevations. Air is also thinner in hot weather and denser in cooler air. Aircraft also need higher approach speeds during windy and gusty conditions to compensate for headwind drops that cause an immediate loss of airspeed, as well as downdrafts and wind shear. Heavy winds and gusty conditions are especially bad for aircraft landings.

The McDonnell Douglas MD-11 Landing Speed

The Douglas DC-10 and McDonnell Douglas MD-11 stand out among large jet airliners for their relatively high approach and landing speeds. Of these two aircraft, the MD-11 has the higher landing speed. It’s common for MD-11 aircraft to touchdown at speeds of between 150 and 170 knots when at moderate to high landing weights. Sometimes they are reported to touchdown at speeds above 170 knots or even around 180 knots, though this typically occurs when they are heavily loaded or operating in gusty conditions.

For comparison, the DC-10 typically has a final approach speed of around 140 to 150 knots when operating at its maximum landing weight (MLW). The DC-8 was similar with a range of around 140 to 150 knots at its MLW. The Boeing 717 was developed from the MD-80 and marketed as the McDonnell Douglas MD-95 before the McDonnell Douglas merger with Boeing in 1997. It lands at 140 to 160 knots, although it can be around 130 knots when lightly loaded.

Boeing’s older Boeing 707 also has a higher landing speed, between 140 and 160 knots. This is common for older generation jetliners, and as jetliners go, the Boeing 707 belongs to the first generation. More modern commercial aircraft have lower landing speeds. The MD-11 has higher wing loading, and its wing/airframe design produces less low-speed lift than that of later widebody aircraft. This means it has to maintain a higher speed to avoid stalling while landing.

Modern Commercial Aircraft Have Slower Landing Speeds

Most modern commercial airliners have final approaches in the 130 to 140 knot range. Airbus’ documentation provides a representative final approach speed of around 140 knots at MLW for the A350-900, a variant that was never built. It says, « The final approach speed is 140 kt at a MLW of 207000 kg (456357 lb) and classifies the aircraft into the Aircraft Approach Category C. » The A380-800 often touches down in the low 130s.

The weight of the A330, A320, and A350 are all similar at around 130 to 140 knots, depending on variants, weight, weather conditions, etc. The smaller Airbus A220 (originally the Bombardier CSeries) has a lower landing speed of around 110 to 125 knots, again depending on specifics. Separately, the landing speeds of many fighter jets are similar to those of commercial aircraft, unless it’s an aircraft like the F-35B that can land vertically.

Modern Boeing aircraft are similar in landing speeds, typically in the 130–140 knot range, with the Boeing 787 commonly landing in the low-to-mid 130s with typical weights. The Boeing 747 Jumbo can reach up to 150 knots, though this depends on its weight and variant. Jumbos can land in the 130s. Boeing lists its aircraft (including McDonnell Douglas aircraft) by their landing speeds, with the MD-11 as 155 knots, the 777F following closely at 150 knots and the 787-9 at 153 knots. It’s unclear why the Dreamliner is given such a high landing speed, as it typically lands slower than that.

The World’s Largest Trijet

The McDonnell Douglas MD-11 has the distinction of being the largest trijet ever built, and it remained in production until 2000, three years after the merger with Boeing. A total of 200 were built. The type was designed to compete with the Boeing 767 and Airbus A330, although it ultimately proved unsuccessful in challenging those popular mid-sized widebody aircraft. The A330 also had the quad-engined A340 counterpart for long-haul flights.

The aircraft is around 200 feet and a wingspan of 170.5 feet. Its wing area is 3,648 square feet, while its make take-off weight is 602,500 lbs. It is optionally powered by Pratt & Whitney PW4000 or General Electric CF6 turbofans. The CF6 is the world’s most successful widebody engine and remains in production for the remaining Boeing 767 freighters still being delivered. The MD-11s remaining in service are powered by the GE CF6.

A total of 71 of the 200 examples produced remain in three freighter airlines’ inventory. It is now an aging aircraft, averaging over 30 years. Freighter airliners live for longer than commercial passenger airliners and typically retire between 30 and 40 years old. Many retired commercial passenger airliners get a second lease on life by being converted into freighters, as many MD-11s did.

The MD-11’s Safety Record

The MD-11’s high landing speed as well as its pitch characteristics, reactive control systems, and reduced stabilizer size are believed to have contributed to crashes over the years. The aircraft is known to have a comparatively demanding and unforgiving landing profile, and crew are required to have extensive training to operate the aircraft. Four MD-11s have crashed while landing. Boeing was always highly acclaimed for its excellent engineering, while McDonnell Douglas was perhaps more questionable. Some have pointed to Boeing’s acquisition of McDonnell Douglas as a root cause of the MAX crisis.

Over its lifetime, the MD-11 has seen a total of 50 aviation incidents resulting in the hull loss of 11 aircraft, or around 5% of the total built. A total of 261 fatalities have been recorded in these incidents, including 16 ground fatalities. Four of these crashes occurred in a 13-month window of time between September 1998 and October 1999. The UPS crash in November 2025 was the first crash since 2016, after UPS Airlines Flight 61 suffered a runway excursion and nose-gear collapse following an aborted takeoff.

Today, no MD-11s are used as regularly scheduled passenger airliners; the aircraft type is mostly used as a freighter. They are used by UPS Airlines (27 examples in inventory), FedEx Express (29 examples in inventory), and Western Global Airlines (15 examples in inventory). Due to the FAA grounding order following the UPS Airlines Flight 2976 crash, all are parked.

The Hey-Day Of MD-11 Is Over

The MD-11 is known to have a higher-than-average landing speed and is one of the trickiest aircraft to land overall, with pilots needing special training. It is unclear how the recent accident will impact the future of the type and when they will return to service. They are expected to start returning to service in 2026 after extensive safety checks and any necessary repairs are carried out.

Separately, Boeing is rushing to deliver its final orders for the Boeing 767-300F freighter and the Boeing 777F freighter before new regulations take effect in 2027. While passenger-to-freighter conversions are likely to continue through the decade, there could be a short gap in new widebody freighter deliveries as Airbus is now aiming to deliver its next-generation A350F in the second half of 2027, while Boeing’s 777-8F next-generation freighter has been delayed to at least 2028.

The safety improvements in modern aircraft are apparent when compared with previous-generation aircraft. The Boeing 787 Dreamliner has been in service since 2011 (14 years and 1,235 aircraft delivered) and has suffered only one hull loss. That was Air India Flight 171 after the fuel switch was turned off. The A350 has been in service for ten years (686 aircraft delivered) and has also had one hull loss (Japan Airlines Flight 516 that crashed into a Japan Coast Guard aircraft). After ten years of operations, the 200 MD-11s experienced nine hull losses.