I have not done well in my previous efforts to photograph NASA’s DC-8 environmental sampling aircraft.  I had taken some distant overhead images when I was down at Star Wars Canyon and had hoped to see it fly at the air show at Edwards AFB last year.  Sadly, that didn’t happen as it was down for some maintenance issues.  With it due for retirement soon, I figured that might have been it.  However, I was chatting to some friends a while back and they informed me that it was due to come up to Everett for about ten days of flying in November.

This proved to be the case.  A program with Boeing as part of their EcoDemonstrator program had a new 737-10 that is ultimately destined for United (if the Max 10 ever gets certificated) flying with sustainable aviation fuel and the DC-8 flying behind it to sample the air, identify the emissions particles and measure the types of contrails formed but the different elements of the fuels.  The Max 10 was painted in a special livery which included the EcoDemonstrator Explorer program name.

The DC-8 was operating from Paine Field for the trials.  I was not able to get it arriving, but it was there long enough that I didn’t miss out.  These shots are from the first time I was able to see it getting ready to fly and heading out.  Over the course of the time it was here, I had further encounters and some of those are worthy of their own posts.  Consequently, there will be more to share of this fantastic relic of a bygone era in passenger aviation.