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Following the successful market entry of the Boeing 747, manufacturer McDonnell Douglas, a firm acquired by Boeing, decided to enter the commercial competition for the wide-body aircraft market with the MD12 project, a design that bears a strong resemblance to the Airbus A380.
The MD-12 was planned to be marketed in four versions:
MD-12 HC (High Capacity), MD-12 LR (Long Range), MD-12ST (Stretch), MD-12 Twin (twin-engine version, with two turbofans of greater unit thrust than those of the basic four-engine version).
The project was canceled following Boeing’s acquisition of McDonnell Douglas in 1997, due to the complexity of constructing such a colossal aircraft and the significant investment required. Boeing continued with the plans envisioned before the takeover of McDonnell Douglas, focusing its strategy on new, even larger designs for the Boeing 747, which essentially consisted of a longer fuselage (about 80 m) and an extension of the upper passenger cabin along its entire length.
- Crew: 2 (pilot and co-pilot)
- Capacity: 430 passengers in three classes (first, business, and economy), and up to 511 passengers in a single-class configuration.
- Length: 63.40 m
- Wingspan: 64.92 m
- Height: 22.55 m
- Wing area: 543.1 m²
- Empty weight: 187,650 kg
- Maximum takeoff weight: 430,500 kg
- Powerplant: 4 General Electric CF6-80C2 high-bypass turbofans.
