This Breguet 941 was tested as the McDonnell Douglas 188 STOL airliner by Eastern Air Lines in 1968 and by American in the spring of 1969. Oddly it never carried a US registration and operated under its type-based French military serial number 2. It is interesting to note that this was a McDonnell and not a Douglas project, even though McDonnell felt more at home building fighters. Taken at the McDonnell factory at Lambert Field, this is assumed to be a McDonnell Douglas photo.

This aircraft was flown as a "McDonnell Douglas 188" STOL demonstrator in the northeast corridor in the US during 1968. It was not registered in the USA, but was operated by the French Air Force on behalf of McDonnell Douglas in full Eastern Air Lines livery, under its military serial 2 (callsign F-ZJRL, formerly coded "L"). The following year it was painted in American Airlines livery and flown on other routes. The aircraft returned to France in June 1969 and was then operated by the French AF coded 62-NB until withdrawn from use in 1974. McDonnell Douglas had obtained a license to build this aircraft in the US as the MD-188, but since the airlines showed little interest the project was dropped and no MD-188s were built.

This Breguet 941S made its first flight as F-ZJRL in 1967, before going on an extensive sales tour in the USA from June 1968 until June 1969 as the McDonnell Douglas 188. It returned to France and was transferred to the Armée de l'Air in 1970 as 62-NB, as seen here. The aircraft was withdrawn from use in 1974. The airframe, only one of five built (one prototype and four production aircraft) was scrapped as Cloyes sur le Loir (France). Date and location of the picture are unknown.

The four Breguet 941s that were in French service had just been withdrawn from use when I came across this one.

Exhibited at the crowded 1971 Paris Show.