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Douglas DC-8-54F · N8052U · Kitty Hawk International

Douglas DC-8-54F illustration in Kitty Hawk International livery Illustrative image; it may differ from the actual aircraft.

Douglas DC-8-54F

DC8-46009Scrapped
RegistrationUSN8052U
Verified aircraft dataagainst the official civil aviation registerWhat does this badge mean?We checked that this aircraft’s registration, serial number and model match the official civil aviation register: FAA (United States), data as of Oct 8, 2026.That makes its identity more reliable. The verification expires after 12 months: if the register stops confirming it, the badge disappears.How we verify
OperatorKitty Hawk International
7operators
0incidents
0accidents
0logbook years
0photos

Douglas DC-8-54F. Operated for United Airlines, Trans Arabian Air Transport and Kitty Hawk International. Scrapped.

Vuelopedia is a work in progress: it currently holds about 30% of the information we expect to have by the third quarter of 2027. Although we use only official, highly reliable sources, some aircraft data and history may still contain errors or inaccuracies. We work hard to clear every anomaly from the records using specialized verification tools.

Technical data

Country of registrationEstados Unidos
MSN46009
VerificationIdentity verified against the official register of FAA (United States) · Oct 8, 2026

The model · Douglas DC-8

Figures for the DC-8-63 variant, the most representative of the family · it is 54% the length of a football pitch

Length57.1 m187 ft
Wingspan45.2 m148 ft
Height12.9 m42 ft
Range7,408 km4,000 NMWith a typical passenger load
Cruise speed895 km/h483 ktMach 0.84
Service ceiling12,800 m41,995 ftIt flies above Everest (1.4 times its height)
Maximum take-off weight161,025 kg354,999 lb
Maximum payload89,022 kg196,260 lbIts 259 passengers with baggage would weigh about 25.9 t; the rest is fuel and cargo
Typical capacity259 passengers
Endurance8 h 17 minAt cruise speed, non-stop

The type first flew in 1958 (68 years ago) · About 556 units built · Production ended in 1972

Figures for the type, not for this particular aircraft: each variant and each configuration changes something. They are shown in both systems used in aviation.

The full story of the Douglas DC-8 Compare this aircraft

Flight logbook

Under research

Aircraft chronology

Oct 31, 1968
Delivered to United Airlines
Delivered to United Airlines as N8052U.
Jul 1, 1985
Transferred to Trans Arabian Air Transport
Transferred to Trans Arabian Air Transport.
Feb 4, 1989
Transferred to Trans Continental Airlines
Transferred to Trans Continental Airlines.
Oct 1, 1990
Transferred to Emery Worldwide Airlines
Transferred to Emery Worldwide Airlines.
Nov 20, 1993
Transferred to American International Airways
Transferred to American International Airways.
Dec 6, 1994
Transferred to Zantop International Airlines
Transferred to Zantop International Airlines.
Dec 31, 1996
Transferred to American International Airways
Transferred to American International Airways.
Feb 3, 1999
Transferred to Kitty Hawk International
Transferred to Kitty Hawk International.

Operators

1968-10-31
United Airlines
Registration N8052U
1985-07-01
Trans Arabian Air Transport
Registration ST-AJR
1989-02-04
Trans Continental Airlines
Registration N8052U
1990-10-01
Emery Worldwide Airlines
Registration N8052U
1993-11-20
1994-12-06
1996-12-31
1999-02-03
Kitty Hawk International
Registration N8052U

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Cite

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This page was last updated on October 10, 2026

APA

Vuelopedia. (2026, October 10). Douglas DC-8-54F · N8052U · Kitty Hawk International. Retrieved October 21, 2026, from https://vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/DC8-46009

MLA

“Douglas DC-8-54F · N8052U · Kitty Hawk International.” Vuelopedia, Fundación Poderia, 10 Oct. 2026, vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/DC8-46009. Accessed 21 Oct. 2026.

Chicago

Vuelopedia. “Douglas DC-8-54F · N8052U · Kitty Hawk International.” Fundación Poderia. Last modified October 10, 2026. https://vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/DC8-46009.

Harvard

Vuelopedia (2026) Douglas DC-8-54F · N8052U · Kitty Hawk International. Available at: https://vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/DC8-46009 (Accessed: 21 October 2026).

BibTeX

@misc{vuelopedia_en_aircraft_dc8_46009,
  author       = {{Vuelopedia}},
  title        = {{Douglas DC-8-54F · N8052U · Kitty Hawk International}},
  publisher    = {Fundación Poderia},
  year         = {2026},
  date         = {2026-10-10},
  url          = {https://vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/DC8-46009},
  howpublished = {\url{https://vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/DC8-46009}},
  urldate      = {2026-10-21},
  note         = {Accessed 2026-10-21}
}

Wikipedia

{{cite web |url=https://vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/DC8-46009 |title=Douglas DC-8-54F · N8052U · Kitty Hawk International |website=Vuelopedia |publisher=Fundación Poderia |date=2026-10-10 |access-date=2026-10-21 |language=en}}