Flying on a 717 right now
...and I got to admit it is sad that one of the last vestiges of MD (née Douglas) is going away. Next to the 757, the MD aircraft are my favorites. I miss having variety in aircraft.
I think the consolidation that has happened in the aircraft manufacturing sector has been a detriment. I know it makes fantastic sense from a finance perspective, but I do believe that competition is healthy--and two manufacturers isn't healthy competition.