One of two DC-9s ordered by German independent airline Sudflug, but never operated. In financial difficulty, the airline was bought by Lufthansa in 1968 and later folded into Condor Flugdienst. The DC-9s were acquired by Swissair before entering service, this one delivered in October 1968. Sold to Texas International in December 1981 as N538TX, it would fly on with Continental Airlines. The aircraft was last registered ZS-OLN since August 1999.