Any MD-90 pilots here?

I've flown on the MD-90 as a passenger but was wondering what pilots who flew that ship felt about it. Passenger reflections welcome here too. Thanks to one and all.

If I recall, the plane has the same EFIS as the MD-80, and one airline fitted their MD-90s with a very similar OVHD panel to that of the MD-11, so their pilots can have an easier transition. Other than this, I believe the cockpit is similar to the rest of the DC-9 series, except for the fact that the MD-90's bigger engines required its pylons to have a flap that goes 30 degrees for stall recovery. Other than this, very, very similar to the DC-9 series. I will stress, I am not a pilot (Heck I'm not even in high school yet) but just giving my two cents worth. Anyone more experienced feel free to correct me.

GalaxyFlyer wrote:

The Mad Dog vs.Lindsay Lohan

(1) Both started out cute, but got stretched
(2) Both smoke
(3) Both make noise when they really should be quiet
(4) Both have legal restrictions which limit how high they are supposed to get
(5) Neither does math very quickly
(6) Both are unpredictable when you take them out in public & neither follows commands well
(7) Both get droopy when not powered up
(8) Both leak inappropriately
(9) Both show up in sequels
(10) Both drink waaay too much
(11) When either tries to stop, they get the shakes
(12) Both are frequently driven by people on probation

(13) Both have pointy noses


Jokes aside, I do have one question, and that is "What is the MD-90's hot/high field performance like?" I did hear that it had the most powerful rear mounted engines on any pax airliner but I do not know the validity of this statement.

Boeing has a page on Airport compatibility of various airliners. Under the subheading of the MD-90 it has a chart on aircraft takeoff performance for various gross weights and altitude. .

One chart is for MD-90 performance on a standard day at various gross weights. The other chart is for a standard day plus 15 degrees C [normal takeoff thrust, zero runway gradient and zero wind].

It shows the MD-90 as requiring a bit over a 10,000 foot runway at an altitude of 6000 feet above sea level at full gross weight. At 2000 feet in the same conditions, the aircraft requires about a 9,000 foot runway and at sea level a little more than 7000 feet.

At the Albuquerque, New Mexico Sunport, at about one mile above sea level, the MD-90 could takeoff easily with a full load at a temperature of 99 degree F on the main north south runway.

The Boeing chart shows that the MD-90 only needs to sacrifice weight on a standard day or a standard day + 15 degrees C at an altitude of 8000 feet above sea level.

It looks like it was a rocket.

From a passenger’s perspective, seated in row 12 or so, it was the quietest commercial aircraft I have ever been on. Quieter than the 717, IMO. Virtually no engine noise. I will need to compare with the A220 someday, but the MAX and NEO were not any quieter from inside the cabin.

convair880mfan wrote:

Boeing has a page on Airport compatibility of various airliners. Under the subheading of the MD-90 it has a chart on aircraft takeoff performance for various gross weights and altitude. .

One chart is for MD-90 performance on a standard day at various gross weights. The other chart is for a standard day plus 15 degrees C [normal takeoff thrust, zero runway gradient and zero wind].

It shows the MD-90 as requiring a bit over a 10,000 foot runway at an altitude of 6000 feet above sea level at full gross weight. At 2000 feet in the same conditions, the aircraft requires about a 9,000 foot runway and at sea level a little more than 7000 feet.

At the Albuquerque, New Mexico Sunport, at about one mile above sea level, the MD-90 could takeoff easily with a full load at a temperature of 99 degree F on the main north south runway.

The Boeing chart shows that the MD-90 only needs to sacrifice weight on a standard day or a standard day + 15 degrees C at an altitude of 8000 feet above sea level.

It looks like it was a rocket.

What is the flap setting used in those charts ?


At high elevation airports, in the MD80, particularly Mexico City at 7300 feet we would normally use a ‘dial a flap’ setting of just 4 degrees (with slats) which significantly improved performance

DeltaMD95 wrote:

From a passenger’s perspective, seated in row 12 or so, it was the quietest commercial aircraft I have ever been on. Quieter than the 717, IMO. Virtually no engine noise. I will need to compare with the A220 someday, but the MAX and NEO were not any quieter from inside the cabin.

On the other hand, sitting a the emergency exit next to engine is extremely loud. My only flight on an MD-90 (ATL-PHL on DL ij 2019) was exactly in that one seat in the back and I remember being really glad having active noise cancelling headphones. Sitting in the front however is really quiet. Can't say anything about the MD-90 in that regard, but even the MD-82 with its JT8Ds was much less noisy in the front, than any A320 (ceo or neo), B737 or A220.