The Pima Air & Space Museum will add the recently retired Orbis DC-10 Flying Eye Hospital to its ever-expanding world renowned collection.
The Orbis DC-10, Flying Eye Hospital, arrived Monday, November 7 at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base to be towed to nearby Pima Air & Space Museum. A formal induction ceremony and opening of public static display will be announced at a later date.
“We couldn’t be more excited to bring this significant aircraft to the museum, the Tucson community and Arizona in general,” said Scott Marchand, executive director of the Pima Air & Space Museum. “We are honored to be selected by Orbis to be the custodian of this very unique aircraft and to be able to display it to the public and teach visitors from the USA and around the world about its important humanitarian role.”
The Orbis DC-10, Flying Eye Hospital is the result of a unique and lasting alliance forged between the medial and aviation industries. As an airborne eye hospital, Orbis has been able to relocate an ophthalmic teaching facility to airports throughout the developing world. On the outside, the plane is like most other aircraft. Inside, however, it is like no other aircraft in the world.
“Our mission at Orbis is to bring the world together to fight blindness, as we believe that no one should go blind from conditions that are treatable or preventable,” said Bob Ranck, president and CEO, Orbis International. “The Flying Eye Hospital helps us do that. It is in equal parts teacher, envoy and advocate. We harness this powerful tool for change to support long-term programs around the world.”
On its final historic flight to the Pima Air & Space Museum, the Orbis DC-10 will be piloted by the longest serving Orbis volunteer pilot, Captain William Willson, a retired United Airlines Pilot. He will be assisted by a volunteer FedEx flight crew, consisting of: Robert Rutherford, David Hulbert, and Terry Zubrod. Also on board are Orbis Aircraft Maintenance personnel Richard Jorgenson and John Mashino and Orbis’s Director of Aircraft Operations, Bruce Johnson.
Orbis DC-10 Flying Eye Hospital
This particular DC-10, DC-10-10, is the second McDonnell-Douglas DC-10 to be produced. First serving as a test aircraft, the airplane would later go on to be used by numerous other airlines. In 1992, Orbis purchased it and registered it as N220AU. After 2 years of outfitting the Orbis DC-10 took over as the world’s only Flying Eye Hospital and completed its inaugural mission to Beijing, China. Over the next 22 years, the Orbis DC-10 completed 299 missions, and visited 78 countries. The Orbis DC-10 took its final Flying Eye Hospital mission to Trujillo, Peru in September 2015.”
