It is serial number #1 because it was the first and only fully functional and flying airframe that ever left the McDonnell factory in St. Louis. There had been another airframe in progress but was never completed.
What makes it unique is that the fuselage is about 50% longer than a Sabreliner (T-39) yet sports (4) turbojet, pod-style engines under it's wings - which makes it almost resemble a miniature 707 or 720. The engine nacelles themselves are unique in that they have a rounded-square shape, something I've not seen on any other aircraft of any type.
Originally specced to be built for the military it was given the designation of MD 199, which later turned to MD 220 when it was repurposed for the role of 10-passenger "biz jet", a category that was literally created for aircraft, and the first to be certified by the FAA as a "business jet".
Today it sits idle, baking the in the hot desert sun where it's been for years, while it's owner attempts to find it a proper home in a museum.
The future of the MD 200 is unclear as it would be financially impractical to revive it to flying condition and so far no museum has the funds to get it transported. So it sits, being admired by everyone who sees it as a unique, one-off aircraft.
Taken with the iPhone 4s, which can't handle high degrees of light-to-dark differential, I had to tweak these images manually in PS to get a decent balance between light and dark.
Enjoy this rarest of birds.
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