Summary Air New Zealand operated eight DC-10s between 1973 and 1983, with the last one added in 1977. Tragedy struck in 1979 when ZK-NZP crashed into Mount Erebus, killing all onboard. Six of the DC-10s left Air New Zealand between 1981 and 1982, serving various airlines worldwide.
Did you know that Air New Zealand used to operate the three-engined McDonnell Douglas DC-10 widebody? The carrier has been flying under its current name for almost six decades, so the trijet's nine-year spell at New Zealand's national airline could easily be forgotten. It operated up to eight DC-10 aircraft between 1973 and 1983. With this in mind, let's see where these aircraft ended up.
1970s arrivals of the DC-10 The McDonnell Douglas DC-10 was a product of the 1970s, with the type first flying in August 1970 before entering commercial service a year later. ATDB.aero shows that Air New Zealand received all eight of its DC-10-30 aircraft in the middle part of this decade, with the brand-new trijets coming straight from the factory.
The first pair (ZK-NZL and ZK-NZM) came onboard in 1973, arriving in January and September of that year. 1974 saw two more arrivals at opposite ends of the year, with ZK-NZN joining in January, followed by ZK-NZP in December. The pattern continued in 1975, with the arrival of ZK-NZQ (February) and ZK-NZR (October).
Love aviation history ? Discover more of our stories here! After this, the remaining arrivals slowed down to a rate of just one incoming aircraft per year. .