during 1993 mcdonnell douglas seemed to be favoring a life extension program of the dc-9-30, under the program name dc-9x, to continue its presence in the 100-120 seat market, rather than concentrating on the new build md-95. in its evaluation of the engine upgrades available for the dc-9x, mcdonnell douglas found that the bmw rolls-royce br700 engine to be the ideal candidate, and on february 23, 1994 the br700 was selected as the sole powerplant for the airliner.