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The original 3-tail DC-4. (NJAHOF)
Arthur Raymond said, “We designed the first DC-4 by committee. Before this, we worked with one airline, like American or TWA. Five airlines were in on the DC-4 design, and everyone wanted something special on their version. The crowning blow came when they all said it had to fit in the DC-3 hangar. This meant we had to put five tails on it. We had to take the control surface area under engine out conditions, and spread it over the five tails (three above and two below) to squeeze it in the DC-3 hangar. That was its downfall. We had a terrible time working out the stability and getting it licensed.”
In May 1939, following its first flight and a year of factory testing, United Airlines took tentative delivery of the experimental DC-4. For three weeks they tested it and found it met some but not all the specifications. They decided not to purchase it. The other airlines followed United’s lead, and as previously agreed, each paid Douglas Aircraft $91,250 to cover partial engineering and development costs.
“When we got it to the point of flying,” said Raymond, “it had gained so much weight (65,000 pounds) and was so ungainly that Doug junked the whole thing. He knew it was a lemon. Then we redesigned it the way we wanted it, with a single tail, not so heavy, and it was a success.”
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