DC-9/MD80 is a perfectly safe airplane when properly maintained and operated.
The MD80 is a flying coffin when something goes wrong. The way my father put it to me years ago, when it came to design durability and performance envelope forgiveness in the MD80, there isn't a whole lotta wiggle room for error. Tiny wings with a high swept design and a weighted tail. When it's performing it does it well, but when things go wrong, his question was does the design and mechanics of the aircraft allow for wiggle outside of normal flight envelope? (I.e. a simple trim bar ring breaks, and it has no elevator control as in Air Alaska accident).
If we look at the ATR72: tiny wings and large round body. This maximizes on design and flying costs. When something goes wrong, does this allow room for forgiveness? Is it why we have a high number of spectacular fatal accidents when something does go wrong?
According to my buddy Dave who is a pilot for Jazz Airlines - the Dash 8 in comparison it's a rugged plane and forgiving for stupid mistakes. He thinks the ATR with the wider body and smaller wing design means that it's not very forgiving for said stupid mistakes or allowed to push much outside its flight envelope. Is he right or is the answer something simpler?
