McDonnell Douglas DC-9
Narrow-body jet

- Passengers flown a year
- 141.3K
- 50th-most common US type
- Airframes in US fleets
- 14
- US operators
- 3
- Airports served
- 7
- Countries
- 3
- Load factor
- 37.7%
Where the McDonnell Douglas DC-9 flies
Filed traffic dataThe operators table below counts the registered McDonnell Douglas DC-9 airframes each airline owns (US DOT Form 41). These figures are how much the type actually flew — departures, seats, and passengers filed with US DOT T-100 over the trailing 12 months, not fleet size.
Departures flown
2,838
May 2026
Seats flown
439,115
Passengers
141,326
Load factor
37.7%
RPM ÷ ASM
Block hours
4,735
Busiest McDonnell Douglas DC-9 routes
The McDonnell Douglas DC-9's busiest US routes over the trailing 12 months, by departures.
Havana – Miami (HAV–MIA)
582 departures · 17,683 passengers · 235 mi
19.6%
Load
Holguin – Miami (HOG–MIA)
370 departures · 17,738 passengers · 427 mi
30.9%
Load
Miami – Santa Clara (MIA–SNU)
369 departures · 13,995 passengers · 228 mi
24.5%
Load
Willemstad – Miami (CUR–MIA)
346 departures · 27,238 passengers · 1,192 mi
50.8%
Load
Santa Clara – Tampa (SNU–TPA)
282 departures · 20,034 passengers · 411 mi
45.8%
Load
Camaguey – Miami (CMW–MIA)
270 departures · 14,827 passengers · 339 mi
35.4%
Load
Havana – Tampa (HAV–TPA)
259 departures · 8,878 passengers · 343 mi
22.1%
Load
Holguin – Tampa (HOG–TPA)
192 departures · 13,722 passengers · 631 mi
46.1%
Load
Cap Haitien – Miami (CAP–MIA)
36 departures · 2,832 passengers · 664 mi
50.7%
Load
Miami – Santiago (MIA–SCU)
11 departures · 372 passengers · 491 mi
21.8%
Load
10 departures · 239 passengers · 204 mi
15.4%
Load
Miami – Nassau (MIA–NAS)
9 departures · 100 passengers · 185 mi
7.2%
Load
Miami – Punta Cana (MIA–PUJ)
8 departures · 790 passengers · 911 mi
63.7%
Load
Freeport – Miami (FPO–MIA)
6 departures · 322 passengers · 112 mi
34.6%
Load
Miami – Basseterre (MIA–SKB)
6 departures · 210 passengers · 1,271 mi
22.6%
Load
The longest and shortest McDonnell Douglas DC-9 flights
The two ends of the type's working envelope, from the routes it actually flew — not what the airframe is certified to do.
Longest route flown
1,192 mi
Willemstad – Miami (CUR–MIA)
3h 10m block · 346 departures · 51% load
Flown by World Atlantic Airlines.
Shortest route flown
228 mi
Miami – Santa Clara (MIA–SNU)
1h 11m block · 369 departures · 24% load
Flown by World Atlantic Airlines. Also one of the type's busiest routes anywhere in the US — a short hop worked like a bus line.
Source: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, T-100 Segment. Data through May 2026.
Airports the McDonnell Douglas DC-9 serves
The McDonnell Douglas DC-9 serves 7 US airports across 3 countries. The busiest, by departures:
- MIA
966 departures · 5 routes · 1 operator
36.2%
Share
- HAV
Havana
421 departures · 2 routes · 1 operator
15.8%
Share
- TPA
369 departures · 3 routes · 1 operator
13.8%
Share
- SNU
Santa Clara
325 departures · 2 routes · 1 operator
12.2%
Share
- HOG
Holguin
281 departures · 2 routes · 1 operator
10.5%
Share
- CUR
Willemstad
173 departures · 1 route · 1 operator
6.5%
Share
- CMW
Camaguey
135 departures · 1 route · 1 operator
5.1%
Share
Who flies the McDonnell Douglas DC-9
Two questions in one table. Airframes is what each carrier reported owning in its US DOT fleet filing; seats flown is how much of the type it actually operated. They can rank differently, and the gap is the interesting part.
| Operator | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| World Atlantic AirlinesWL | 7 | 439.1K | 100.0% | 25.1 yr |
| Everts Air Cargo5V | 3 | 0 | 0.0% | 12.1 yr |
| Ameristar Air CargoAMQ | 4 | — | — | 33.5 yr |
Airframes are the latest Form 41 filing; seats flown and share are US DOT T-100 for the type's most-flown operators — a dash means a carrier isn't among them (a freighter operator, or one that flies fewer).
How old is the US McDonnell Douglas DC-9 fleet?
Age is measured from each airframe's delivery date — the FAA airworthiness date where available, otherwise the manufacturer's. Bars share a fixed scale across every fleet page, so two carriers can be compared directly.
Monthly McDonnell Douglas DC-9 capacity
How common is the McDonnell Douglas DC-9?
The McDonnell Douglas DC-9 makes up 0.2% of all tracked US airline aircraft — the 50th-most common type in service.
Share of all tracked US airline aircraft · top 12 types shown · 118 others hold the remaining 37.5% · McDonnell Douglas DC-9 is the ringed slice at 0.2%
- 1
872 aircraft
10.0%
Share
- 2
708 aircraft
8.1%
Share
- 3
526 aircraft
6.1%
Share
- 4
481 aircraft
5.5%
Share
- 5
470 aircraft
5.4%
Share
- +44 more types
- 50
McDonnell Douglas DC-9#50 · this type
14 aircraft
0.2%
Share
Frequently asked
How many McDonnell Douglas DC-9 are in US airline fleets?
US carriers operate about 14 McDonnell Douglas DC-9 aircraft across 3 airlines, 8 of them in service.
Which airline operates the most McDonnell Douglas DC-9?
World Atlantic Airlines operates the largest US McDonnell Douglas DC-9 fleet, with about 7 aircraft.
What is the busiest McDonnell Douglas DC-9 route?
The busiest US route flown by the McDonnell Douglas DC-9 is HAV–MIA, with about 582 departures over the trailing 12 months.
Which airline flies the McDonnell Douglas DC-9 the most?
World Atlantic Airlines flies the most McDonnell Douglas DC-9 capacity in US service, with about 439.1K seats flown over the trailing 12 months.
How many passengers does the McDonnell Douglas DC-9 carry?
The McDonnell Douglas DC-9 carried about 141.3K passengers on US routes over the trailing 12 months.
What is the longest McDonnell Douglas DC-9 flight?
The longest US route flown by the McDonnell Douglas DC-9 is CUR–MIA, about 1,192 miles, flown by World Atlantic Airlines.
How many airports does the McDonnell Douglas DC-9 serve?
The McDonnell Douglas DC-9 serves about 7 US airports across 3 countries, led by Miami (MIA).
How old is the average McDonnell Douglas DC-9?
The US McDonnell Douglas DC-9 fleet averages about 24.7 yr.
How common is the McDonnell Douglas DC-9 in US fleets?
The McDonnell Douglas DC-9 is the 50th-most common aircraft type in tracked US airline fleets, by number of aircraft.