AA MD 80 Tailcones

[gdg9]

Pardon me if this has been discussed before... but I just want to confirm something.... is it correct that AA is manufacturing their own new tail cones for the Super 80s? This is to conserve fuel?

Old:
[photoid=248443]

New:
[photoid=251968]

[Greg]

Could be any number of reasons it is an ex-TWA MD83 vs. an AA MD82. It would be a better comparison if it were the same type with the same pedigree that you compare.

-Greg

[seventwo]

There are two types of tail cones. they are interchangeable, and origin doesn’t matter. They can get swapped out for whatever reason, there are no rules for which planes have the new ones and which planes dont. The pointy DC-9-10~50 style tailcone is the old one, the new one is actually the one that looks like a screwdriver. The new one is only used on the MD-80/90/95. I think it was developed with either the MD-90 or the -95 program. Yes, AA is making them and they do save fuel.

[ACman]

The S-80 (MD-80), MD-81, -82 are the ones that origonally came with the pointed cones. McDD realized through the design programme of the MD-80 that the flat tail cone was better. This was realizes with the introduction of the MD-87.

Yes, they are internchangeable, but the Flat cone is a bit longer. It really depends if its a MD-82 or MD-83. McDD told airlines that operated the -80, -81, and -82 that they could by the flat cone.