PMDG’s Robert Randazzo has opened up about what’s next for the long-running developer, revealing new details about its collaboration with Boeing and what simmers can expect from the all-new 737 NG built for Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024.
Speaking with Sky Blue Radio’s JT, Randazzo discussed how PMDG has been quietly working with Boeing and Microsoft on a new Virtual Airplane Procedures Trainer, a professional-grade system that uses Microsoft Flight Simulator (2020) technology to modernise pilot training. The project will allow airline crews to learn flows, switch logic, and cockpit procedures in a non-threatening, screen-based environment long before they reach a full-motion simulator. PMDG provided some of its well-known Boeing simulation tech to Boeing’s development teams, though Randazzo was clear: the trainer is Boeing and Microsoft’s product. For him, it’s the realisation of an idea PMDG first pitched to Boeing two decades ago.
When the conversation turned to Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024, Randazzo confirmed that PMDG isn’t simply porting its 737 NG from the 2020 platform—it’s a near-total rebuild. “We decided to start fresh,” he said. “Dragging a three-and-a-half-year-old product over just wouldn’t do justice to what 2024 can offer.” Internally considered version 4.0, the new NG features a completely reworked cockpit and passenger cabin, enhanced lighting and animations, and a fully refactored sound suite developed by a 737-rated audio engineer. Randazzo described standing outside the aircraft in-sim and hearing it roar past as just like the real-deal.
In terms of release, Randazzo said the 737-800 is on track to arrive before the end of the year, with the rest of the NG line expected to follow soon after. Current 2020 owners will be offered upgrade pricing rather than having to repurchase in full.
PMDG has also used the project to loosen up creatively. The new NG will include a few light-hearted Easter eggs and interactive cabin features that reflect the personality of the team. “The last five years have not been fun,” Randazzo admitted. “It’s been a steep uphill learning curve… but the team is now really having some fun.”
Beyond the NG, PMDG’s long-awaited 747 line continues to progress in parallel. The Classic variant’s cockpit and modelling are nearly complete, while the 747-400’s coding is further ahead, but its visuals are still catching up. One could release before the other, depending on which team crosses the line first. The 737 MAX remains firmly in development plans, and will come after the 747 series, and while the community continues to hope for a 757, Randazzo laughed off the rumour by confirming it’s not true that PMDG is developing that aircraft type.
Throughout the conversation, Randazzo spoke fondly of how far the simulator world has come. From his early days with floppy disks and pixelated panels to seeing modern aircraft rendered with cinematic realism, he sees MSFS 2024 as another leap forward—and one PMDG intends to match.
Randazzo also spoke about the changing technology behind Microsoft Flight Simulator, praising Microsoft and Asobo’s “forward-thinking” approach to making the platform truly cross-compatible. “I believe that the grand vision for Microsoft Flight Simulator has been all along that it should be hardware agnostic,” he said. “The fact that Asobo and Microsoft were forward-thinking enough to allow their product to run on a PC and on an Xbox and on a PlayStation… I think it’s extraordinary.” While acknowledging that streaming the data is important to the vision, Randazzo described himself as “an old simmer,” preferring to keep the simulator local. “I like the idea of having it local on my machine, so I know the processing is being done there.” Still, he conceded that “the technology is very, very rapidly running in a direction where that’s not going to matter… what a time to be alive.”
There’s a lot more in the full-length interview with JT via the YouTube video above. Robert goes into more detail about how PMDG was formed, what internal banter is like, and how far the team has come over the years.
