The age of the McDonnell Douglas DC-8 has finally come to an end in the US. N782SP, a DC-8-72CF that has been operating for Christian humanitarian aid organization Samaritan’s Purse, has flown its final flight to Lynchburg Regional Airport in Virginia, where it will be put on display. The DC-8 first entered service over 66 years ago, and N782SP in particular is 57 years old. It’s one of the most legendary airliners ever built, but time has finally caught up with the ancient quadjet. However, fans of the aircraft need not fear, as the plane will be preserved and displayed.

The DC-8 was Douglas’s first jet-powered airliner. It was built in part as a response to the Boeing 707, and while it was never as popular as its Boeing counterpart, the two aircraft were responsible for popularizing the concept of a jetliner, thereby launching the Jet Age. It’s a four-engined long-haul narrowbody produced from 1958 to 1972 and was commonly used on short-range as well as transoceanic routes. Most DC-8s were retired in the 1980s and 1990s, with only two more examples flying worldwide with cargo airlines.

The Final US-Registered McDonnell Douglas DC-8

N782SP, line number 427, is the last US-registered DC-8. It’s a 57-year-old DC-8 first delivered in 1969, after the merger between Douglas and McDonnell Aircraft (thereby exiting the factory as a McDonnell Douglas DC-8). Initially, the aircraft was built as a DC-8-62CF equipped with four Pratt & Whitney JT3D turbofans. Planespotters.net shows that 427 was first delivered to Finnair with the registration OH-LFR, where it served for over 12 years before being removed. In total, Finnair operated three DC-8-62CFs.

The DC-8-62CF is a convertible passenger/cargo variant of the DC-8-62 equipped with a cargo door. When in service with Finnair, 427 was configured with 12 first class seats and 124 economy seats. After being removed from Finnair’s fleet in 1981, the aircraft was reengined with the CFM56-2 to become a DC-8-72CF. It ended up being sold to the French Air Force and reregistered as F-RAFG, where it would serve until 2004. After this, the aircraft was sold to US charter airline Air Transport International and reregistered as N721CX.

Samaritan’s Purse, an evangelical Christian organization focusing on humanitarian aid, formally took delivery of the aircraft in 2015, after it spent roughly two years in storage. The DC-8, later reregistered as N782SP, is an aging, fuel-thirsty aircraft that is both expensive to run and maintain. However, this plane was acquired for next to nothing, and given the irregular nature of Samaritan’s Purse’s operations, this is the more important metric for the organization. For the last 10 years, N782SP has been configured in a combi layout with 32 economy seats in the rear of the aircraft.

The End Of DC-8 Operations In The US

Samaritan’s Purse took delivery of a 40-year-old Boeing 757-200F cargo plane in 2022, as well as a new Cessna 408 SkyCourier with a cargo hold and a small passenger cabin in late 2024. The organization has been slowly growing its operations, and the aging DC-8 has become more difficult and expensive to maintain. In February 2025, Samaritan’s Purse took delivery of a 19-year-old Boeing 767-300F as the official replacement to the ancient DC-8, allowing N782SP to finally be put to pasture.

N782SP’s retirement was planned earlier in 2025. The Boeing 767, while significantly more expensive to purchase, is an aircraft that is common around the world, with an extensive support network. It’s more reliable than the vintage DC-8, and it’s easy to train pilots given the abundance of 767 simulators, not the case for the DC-8. In addition, the aircraft has pilot commonality with Samaritan’s Purse’s Boeing 757, reducing crew costs. It’s an overall more cost-effective plane despite the higher purchase price, and it carries significantly more cargo.

Worldwide, only two other DC-8s remain in active service, both of which are DC-8-73CF models that do not carry passengers. 9H-AJO operates for Congolese carrier Trans Air Cargo Service, but flies rarely. The other, OB-2231-P, is in service with Peruvian airline Skybus Jet Cargo, and this aircraft is more active. Both planes are part of the DC-8 Super 70 series, a reengining program to equip the DC-8 with the CFM56. This reduces maintenance costs for the engines and improves fuel efficiency compared to the DC-8’s earlier Pratt & Whitney engines.

Where N782SP Will Rest After Its Long Life Of Service

N782SP’s final task was to provide relief for victims of Hurricane Melissa in Jamaica. This was the aircraft’s 218th mission as Samaritan’s Purse’s primary heavy-lift aircraft. FlightAware shows that once this assignment was complete, the aircraft departed Kingston on December 6 to return to Samaritan’s Purse’s aviation facilities in Greensboro, South Carolina. The following day, the aircraft was ferried on a short 29-minute flight from Greensboro to Lynchburg Regional Airport in Virginia, where it will remain.

N782SP has been donated to Liberty University, a private evangelical college located in Lynchburg. Students and staff members from Liberty University joined Samaritan’s Purse on the aircraft’s final mission to Jamaica, where they delivered 9,200 shoebox gifts to the victims of Hurricane Melissa as part of « Operation Christmas Child ». The aircraft was flown to Lynchburg on December 7 and is currently undergoing preparations to be put on display at the university.

Liberty University is a large private university. Just like Samaritan’s Purse, it’s also an advocate for evangelical Christianity, and it features a thorough aviation program. It’s been confirmed that N782SP will be placed on display at the university, although it’s unclear what the timeline is for this project or how much access students or staff will have to the aircraft. Regardless, however, it will be one of the most striking display items at any university in the United States.

The Life Of The McDonnell Douglas DC-8

The Douglas DC-8 (renamed McDonnell Douglas DC-8 after 1967) was originally born out of a request by the United States Air Force for aerial refuelers. Boeing ended up winning the contract with its KC-135, developed from the 367-80 concept, and it later adapted the 367-80 to create the 707 airliner. Douglas, having thoroughly developed its competing concept already, moved forward to create a commercial variant of its proposal, dubbed the Douglas DC-8.

Douglas was more hesitant on the concept of a jetliner than Boeing, but Pan American World Airways ended up ordering 20 707s and 25 DC-8s, with more orders following rapidly. The DC-8 was a competent airliner, but Douglas initially produced the DC-8 in a single fuselage length variant. Boeing, in contrast, produced the shorter 720 (707-020) and the larger 707-320. This reduced demand for the DC-8 in comparison to its rival until the introduction of the stretched DC-8 Super 60 models.

Nearly half of all DC-8s were either the DC-8-61, DC-8-62, or DC-8-63 models. The DC-8 Super 70 series was a retrofit program to replace the JT3D with the CFM56, which was more powerful, cheaper to maintain, and significantly more fuel efficient. This extended the life of the DC-8 in commercial service long past that of the Boeing 707, although the KC-135 remains in military service (also equipped with the CFM56).

The End Of DC-8 Commercial Service

Advances in fuel efficiency and capability were far greater between aircraft generations in the late 20th century than today. United Airlines, the world’s largest customer for the DC-8, retired its non-upgraded DC-8s by the 1980s, while the DC-8 Super 70 models were retired by 1991. Delta Air Lines, another prominent DC-8 operator, retired most of its DC-8s by 1981, while the DC-8-71s remained until 1989.

Generally, DC-8s were replaced by late-model Boeing 727-200s or by the Boeing 757-200. These planes could match the capabilities of shorter-range DC-8s and were significantly more fuel efficient. The Super 70 series persisted due to the improved economics offered by the CFM56, helping the DC-8 outlive the Boeing 707. The DC-8 continued to serve with cargo airlines, most notably UPS Airlines, but the age of these quadjets meant that UPS and most others retired these aircraft in the 2000s. UPS operated its last DC-8 flight in 2009.

Ultimately, the DC-8 is far outdated. The planes require a flight engineer, have four engines, have limited, if any, part support, and are an aircraft designed for a different era. Although two examples remain airworthy, the retirement of N782SP will only serve to further restrict parts supplies as the aircraft will not be scrapped. Two more are operational, but not for very long.