Precision Manuals Development Group (often abbreviated as PMDG) is a commercial add-on aircraft developer for the Microsoft Flight Simulator,[1]Lockheed Martin Prepar3D,[2] and X-Plane[3] 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.[4] It has eight employees as of 2018, with a collection of beta testers which include multiple aviation professionals.
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.[5]
On October 25, 2014, it was announced on PMDG's AVSIM forum, that the Boeing 777-200LR base package will be available on the Prepar3D platform.[6]
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.
On January 6, 2016, PMDG released the Douglas DC-6 simulation, marking the first aircraft by the company for the X-Plane series of flight simulators.[7]
On February 24, 2019, PMDG announced that they would develop no new products for 32-bit platforms (not precluding updates to existing products).[8] On November 8, 2019, the PMDG NGXu was released. It is an improved version of their previous Boeing 737 product for the Prepar3D platform and offers the BCF, BDSF, BBJ1, and BBJ2 variants as expansions.[9] PMDG had announced the previous day that all development for the X-Plane platform as well as all 32-bit platforms would be cancelled.[10] On October 20, 2020, PMDG announced the development of the 777X family of airliners was in an early stage.[11] 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. On August 24, 2023, the PMDG 737-800 was released for Microsoft Flight Simulator.
On October 21, 2023, PMDG announced the release of the EFB update for their Boeing 737 product for Microsoft Flight Simulator. In a forum post, Robert S. Randazzo stated that the free update would be released on October 30, 2023, and would feature Navigraph/SimBrief integration and performance calculations. The update was notable for releasing much later than anticipated. PMDG had initially quoted a six month timeline, and Randazzo later stated they expected the development to last for "a couple of months". However, the update was ultimately released one year and three months after the initial version of the 737. Randazzo attributed this delay to issues with the simulator's interface between the tablet component and the custom aircraft logic.[12][13]
