Modified Boeing 777 Set to Replace DC-8 as NASA’s Premier Research Aircraft Written 24 April 2026
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NASA’s retired Airborne Science DC-8. | Credit: Jim Ross; NASA
Flying Magazine reports, “A heavily modified Boeing 777-200ER formerly operated by Japan Air Lines will soon become NASA’s largest flying science laboratory. The retired commercial jet arrived at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Virginia on Wednesday following a check flight and three-hour transit from Waco, Texas, where L3Harris since January 2025 had been making structural modifications. It will replace the space agency’s retired Douglas DC-8, which flew its final science mission in 2024 after 37 years in service.”
Full Story (Flying Magazine)