McDonnell Douglas was an American aerospace corporation formed in 1967 by the merger of McDonnell Aircraft and Douglas Aircraft. The combination brought together military fighters, commercial transports and space systems. It remained a separate corporation until its merger with Boeing on 1 August 1997.[1]Space hangar to honour James S. McDonnellSmithsonian National Air and Space Museum · airandspace.si.edu · Accessed 2026-09-13Open source details[2]Boeing Chronology: 1997Boeing · boeing.com · Accessed 2026-09-13Open source details
Combined industrial activities
The merger united McDonnell's St. Louis fighter and spacecraft operation with Douglas's Californian aircraft and aerospace businesses. Under James McDonnell's leadership, the combined company introduced the DC-10 airliner and F-15 and F-18 fighters. Its space activities included the Saturn V third stage and Skylab, as well as subcontracting on the Space Shuttle orbiter. The breadth of these programmes meant that airline procurement, military requirements and government space projects all influenced the company's industrial workload.[1]Space hangar to honour James S. McDonnellSmithsonian National Air and Space Museum · airandspace.si.edu · Accessed 2026-09-13Open source details
Commercial transports
McDonnell Douglas continued the Douglas transport lineage while developing new generations. The MD-11 expanded upon the DC-10 with a longer fuselage, aerodynamic changes and updated systems. Final assembly took place at Long Beach, supported by an international supplier network. Passenger, freighter, convertible and combined passenger-cargo configurations addressed different airline requirements. Winglets, a revised tail and other refinements sought to improve operating performance. The aircraft first flew in 1990; its production and final delivery continued under Boeing after the corporate merger.[3]MD-11 Commercial Transport: Select ProductsBoeing · boeing.com · Accessed 2026-09-13Open source details
Military partnerships and Boeing merger
The company also developed aircraft through international partnerships. Its work with the British Harrier industry led to the AV-8B, proposed in 1975 as an extensively revised vertical- and short-take-off attack aircraft. The resulting programme linked American and British design and manufacturing capabilities. In 1997 McDonnell Douglas merged with Boeing, and its former chief executive Harry Stonecipher became Boeing's president and chief operating officer. The transaction transferred ongoing programmes into a larger organisation while preserving aircraft families whose development had begun under several earlier company names.[4]Last AV-8B Harrier jet flies away into historyBoeing · boeing.com · Accessed 2026-09-13Open source details[2]Boeing Chronology: 1997Boeing · boeing.com · Accessed 2026-09-13Open source details