# Precision Manuals Development Group

Precision Manuals Development Group (often abbreviated as PMDG) is a commercial add-on aircraft developer for the Microsoft Flight Simulator, Lockheed Martin Prepar3D, and X-Plane series. The company was founded by Robert S. Randazzo, who stated that his ultimate goal was to develop the software to the point where it could be used by airlines and manufacturers to supplement pilot training. The company is based out of Las Vegas, Nevada but has several employees in countries such as Belgium, South Africa, and Canada. It has eight employees as of 2018, with a collection of beta testers which include multiple aviation professionals.

## History

Precision Manuals Development Group was founded by Robert S. Randazzo, Senior Developer, in January 1998. Originally conceived as a small technical publishing company, PMDG's first product, the 747-400PS1 User's Guide was released in February 1998, to assist non-pilots with mastering the aircraft. The 747-400PS1 User's Guide was a popular handbook in the PS1 community until it was removed from availability in early 2000.
Looking toward the burgeoning add-on software market for Microsoft Flight Simulator, PMDG launched the FS98 Series Aircraft Operating Manual product line for use with Microsoft Flight Simulator '98.
Building on the same style used in the 747-400PS1 User's Guide, the FS98 Series AOM product line was a departure from the previous PMDG product in that it also included a plug-in flight model that, when used in conjunction with MSFS98 provided the airliner enthusiasts with a highly realistic flight model. The success of the FS98 Series Aircraft Operating Manual product line was based largely on simulator enthusiasts desire for greater fidelity and detail in the desktop flight simulation.
In August 1999, PMDG became the first software developer to formally announce support for FLY! by Terminal Reality. A relatively unknown company at the time, Terminal Reality was endeavoring to produce a flight simulator experience that more closely mirrored the complexities of modern aviation than previously available retail market simulators. To this end they succeeded at the general aviation level, but PMDG sought to revolutionize the modeling of airliner simulations by using FLY! as a base for future product development.
PMDG released the FLY! Airliner Series 757-200ER on December 18, 1999, and the product was an instant hit with simulator enthusiasts. Designed to provide a complete airliner experience, the FLY! Airliner Series 757-200ER modelled approximately 90% of the systems, switches and functions in the cockpit of the 757-200, all in accurately modelled 3D space. With hundreds of switches and dozens of complicated systems and procedures to learn, the FLY! Airliner Series 757-200ER included a 160 page operating manual, written in the now classic style of the 747-400 PS1 User's Guide.
The FLY! Airliner Series 767-200/300 was the second product in the FLY! Airliner Series product line and became the last product in which PMDG used the default autopilot and flight systems display logic included in the stock version of FLY!
Recognizing that a higher level of fidelity could be realized with the appropriate skills, PMDG expanded the development staff to include an additional complement of highly skilled developers.
With employees and contractors working around the world, PMDG is headquartered in Northern Nevada. On April 6, 2012, PMDG announced that they would move back to Virginia, where the company was founded.
PMDG has regularly used AVSIM forums for announcements and user support until they opened up their own website forums in 2018. The AVSIM forum section still remains to this day although all activity has been moved to PMDG's website.

## Aircraft

PMDG has created nine aircraft for Flight Simulator 2004 and ten aircraft for Flight Simulator X, two of which are extensions of the 747-400X. The 777-200LR and accompanying 777-300ER expansion were the first PMDG products for Lockheed Martin's Prepar3D as well as Flight Simulator X.
On January 6, 2016, PMDG released the Douglas DC-6 simulation for the X-Plane flight simulator series. It's PMDG's first and only aircraft ever released for the X-Plane series.
On February 24, 2019, PMDG announced that they would cease creating new products for 32-bit platforms (not precluding updates to existing products) which included FSX, FSX Steam Edition, and P3Dv3.
On November 8, 2019, the PMDG NGXu was released. It's an improved version of their previous Boeing 737 product for the Prepar3D platform and offers the BCF, BDSF, BBJ1, and BBJ2 variants as expansions. PMDG had announced the previous day that all development for the X-Plane platform as well as all 32-bit platforms would be cancelled in favor of P3Dv4 and preparation for the release of MSFS2020. On October 20, 2020, PMDG announced the development of the 777X family of airliners was in an early stage. In mid-June 2021, all products for X-Plane and FSX were retired ahead of the release of their first product for the new Microsoft Flight Simulator.
In years past, PMDG required users to buy addons which were bundled with two or more variants of the aircraft family. For example: The Boeing 737-800 and -900 were included as one separate installer and acted as a "base pack", meaning if users wanted to fly the -600 or -700 variants, they would need to purchase the base pack (-800 and -900) and purchase the -600 and -700 pack (sold as an "expansion pack"). The same went for their 777 and 747 product lines. That changed with the advent of MSFS2020 which saw PMDG shift their business model to allow users to purchase specific variants they desired. Meaning that each variant could be purchased as its own separate pack without the need to purchase a base pack or expansion pack (i.e. users could buy the 737-800 only if they desired). Each variant included special configurations like the freighter and BBJ models. This would be the business model PMDG would use moving forward.
PMDG's first FS2020 product was the Douglas DC-6 which released on June 18, 2021. The next year saw the release of the Boeing 737-700 on May 9th, 2022, and the eventual release of the other variants in the 737NG series starting with the -600, -800, and then the -900. PMDG previously stated they were developing the 737 MAX however, the project was halted in favor of prioritizing development for the 747.
PMDG then shifted to their first widebody aircraft, the Boeing 777-300ER, which was released on June 25, 2024. This was followed by the release of the 777F a few months later on December 6th. The -200ER and LR are expected to follow respectively. The Boeing 747 has been in development with plans to include the classic variants alongside the (-400 and -8) exclusively for Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024.
| Aircraft | Flight Simulator 2004 | Flight Simulator X | Prepar3D v2/v3 | Prepar3D v3/v4 | Prepar3D v4/v5 | X-Plane 10 | Microsoft Flight Simulator | Notes |
| Boeing 737-600/700 NG | 2003 | | | | | | | Retired |
| Boeing 737-800/900 NG Expansion | 2003 | | | | | | | Retired |
| Beechcraft 1900D | 2004 | | | | | | | Retired |
| Beechcraft 1900C | 2004 | | | | | | | Retired |
| Boeing 747-400 Queen of the Skies (QOTS) | 2005 | | | | | | | Retired |
| Boeing 747-400F QOTS Expansion | 2006 | | | | | | | Retired |
| Boeing 747-400v2 Queen of the Skies (QOTS) | | October 30, 2007 | | | | | | Retired |
| Boeing 747-8i/F QOTS Expansion | | July 29, 2010 | | | | | | Retired, Visual model only |
| Boeing 747LCF QOTS Expansion | | September 26, 2010 | | | | | | Retired, Visual model only |
| McDonnell Douglas MD-11 | October 14, 2008 | October 14, 2008 | | | | | | Retired |
| Jetstream 4100 | | September 9, 2009 | | | | | | Retired |
| Boeing 737-800/900 NGX | | August 4, 2011 | March 6, 2015 | | | | | Retired |
| Boeing 737-600/700 NGX Expansion | | October 29, 2011 | March 6, 2015 | | | | | Retired |
| Boeing 777-200LR/F | | September 5, 2013 | | February 7, 2015 | February 26, 2021 | | | Retired |
| Boeing 777-300ER Expansion | | July 18, 2014 | | February 7, 2015 | February 26, 2021 | | | Retired |
| Boeing 777-200ER Expansion | | | | | February 26, 2021 | | | Retired |
| Douglas DC-6 | | July 20, 2017 | | July 20, 2017 | | June 1, 2016 | June 18, 2021 | Retired except MSFS |
| Boeing 747-400V3 QoTS II | | January 31, 2017 | | January 31, 2017 | May 8, 2020 | | | Retired Includes 400, 400D, 400M, 400ER, 400F, 400ERF |
| Boeing 747-8i/F Expansion | | September 22, 2018 | | September 22, 2018 | May 8, 2020 | | | Retired |
| Boeing 737-800/900 NGXu | | | | | November 8, 2019 | | | Retired For a short time after release, users could purchase the aircraft and earn a discount when purchasing the 737 NG3 for MSFS when it eventually released |
| Boeing 737-600/700 NGXu Expansion | | | | | February 5, 2020 | | | Retired |
| Boeing 737 NGXu Cargo Expansion | | | | | August 16, 2020 | | | Retired Includes 737-700 BDSF, 737-800 BDSF and BCF |
| Boeing 737 NGXu BBJ Expansion | | | | | October 23, 2020 | | | Retired Includes 737-700 BBJ and 737-800 BBJ |
| Boeing 737 NG3 | | | | | | | 737-700 - May 9, 2022 || 737-600 - July 29, 2022 || 737-800 - August 25, 2022 737-900 - February 7, 2023 | 737-700 includes BBJ1 and BDSF 737-800 includes BBJ2, BDSF and BCF 737-900 includes BBJ3 and ER version |
| Boeing 777-300ER | | | | | | | June 25th, 2024 | |
| Boeing 777F | | | | | | | December 6th, 2024 | |
| Boeing 777-200ER | | | | | | | In Development | |
| Boeing 777-200LR | | | | | | | In Development | |
| Boeing 777X | | | | | | | In Development | Early development stage, no platforms announced (likely MSFS2024) |
| Boeing 747 Family | | | | | | | In Development | (Likely to be released for MSFS2024), 747-100, 747SP, 747-200, 747-300, 747-300, 747-400, 747-8 (Including special versions such as VC-25 or RA-001) |