Airliner Update Review : Boeing 757 Professional "Extended" Series v1.2 by VMAX

[Stephen 142]

Airliner Update Review: Boeing 757 Professional "Extended" Series v1.2 by VMAX

 

FlightFactor/VMAX have released and updated their Boeing 757 Professional Series to version 1.2. And with this update the Boeing 757 series changes into the same packaging as the FF/VMAX Boeing 777 Series in having the basic "Professional" pack of the B757-200 series, and the new "Extended" package of all three types packaged together which includes three aircraft in the  -200, -200SF (cargo) which come with both engine choices of Rolls Royce Engines - RB211-535E4 or the Pratt and Whitney Engines - PW2037 and also now included is the new long stretch version of the Boeing 757-300 which is RR powered. The "Expansion" pack of the -200SF cargo version has now been deleted and is only available in the "Extended" package.

 

If you already own the standard package you can simply get an upgrade code (send an email to sales@x-plane.org  here) of US$20 for the three variants, just like with the B777 "Extended" Pack. If already have both the Pro and the SP cargo packs then the upgrade code is only US$10 to the full "Extended" package.     

 

(Extended Package)

 

The highlight of this release is certainly the  757-300...  So is this the best Boeing 757 variant yet?

 

To find out I flew the -300 variant from KATL (Atlanta) to KLAX (Los Angeles) in a 5h 20min flight of Delta service.

 

 

First view of the -300 version is how looooong it really is? The aircraft is a full 23.4-foot (7.13 m) stretch of the standard 757-200 and at 178.7 feet (54.5 m) the type is the longest single-aisle twinjet ever built. It has a higher MTOW of 272,500 pounds (124,000 kg) is specified and the fuel capacity remains unchanged; as a result the -300 stretched variant offers a maximum range of 3,395 nautical miles (6,290 km). If you select an old -200 livery you can see the plugs in the airframe.

 

 

Boeing thought it was on to a good thing in stretching an already popular -200 version, but Boeing had targeted the 757-300 as a potential 767-200 replacement for two of its largest customers, American Airlines and United Airlines, but neither were in a financial position to commit to new aircraft. So only 55 aircraft were ever built. The first 757-300 was rolled out on May 31, 1998, and completed its maiden flight on August 2, 1998. Following the regulatory certification in January 1999, the type entered service with Condor on March 19, 1999.

 

The 757-300 has been operated by mainline carriers Continental Airlines (now part of United Airlines), Northwest Airlines (now part of Delta Air Lines), and Icelandair; other operators have included American Trans Air (the first North American operator), Arkia Israel Airlines, along with charter carriers Condor and Thomas Cook Airlines. All the original production aircraft are still in service in as of July 2014.

 

I personally like the look of this long and thin version. The Boeing 757 has always been a slightly odd looking aircraft anyway, in being tall but thin against its mortal twin the Boeing 767 twin aisle version. The -300 version make the Boeing 757 more of a statement and say "hey brother, I can play your big games as well" The aircraft is become very hard to replace as well, as until the recent release of the Airbus 321LR (Long Range) NEO option it has been unrivaled in many single-aisle markets and very popular on the North Atlantic routes.

 

FlightFactor/VMAX Boeing B757 version 1.2

This update as noted includes the new variant the -300. The update log (listed at the bottom of the post) is actually quite small? just really a nip and tuck here and there. Any highlighted changes I will note in the update review as we head to KLAX. Two things to note, in that the aircraft after loading takes a fair while to orient itself and get all the functions of the systems up to running order, so you have to be patient and wait for it to finish what it is doing. Another note is that it doesn't like to be moved via the location map or airport gate position. you find the plugin will mis-behave if you do, a clean runway start and a long and boring taxi ride to the gate you want to use is more favourable than the issues that keep cropping up if you move the B757 around quickly. 

 

 

The "office" is still warm as the aircraft has just arrived from San Francisco, and we are the new crew heading back to LAX, so we don't have to completely restart the aircraft from cold. Looking into the cockpit, you can't go past the detailing of this B757 Series from FF/VMAX. It is simply jawdropping in complexity and design, this notes that these high standard aircraft do require either (a) a few hours in X-Plane on heavy aircraft and the need to know at least the basics on how these complex machines fly, a novice would get through, but be aware these aircraft are a very deep immersion simulations, and this B757 Series is very deep indeed. (b ) they need patience and even a bit of homework in the manuals to get the very best out of the simulation, and you have to prepare this aircraft in charts and tables and routing to fly it. Which means an hour on ground before you actually fly if you are not prepared. The CDU (Control and Display Unit) pops out for ease of use for programming, but if you have an iPad (which i do) then this is supported as well, and this is one of the best features on the aircraft and for ease of use in setting out those SID/STAR bookends with the route. The dual and completely separate for the captain and first officer positions CDU's are positioned high on the pedestal, but can be sometimes hard to read in strong daylight.

 

 

To highlight this is the FMC (Flight Management Computer) in that it is a complete reproduction of the real 757 FMC? no default X-Plane flightplans can be used in here. You have to program the system yourself (you can thankfully "save" the completed flightplan), but still you have to program in your departure and arrival preferences, weights, fuel and GPS position. In v1.2 the 757 will now also load the navdata from the Custom Data/GNS430/navdata/ folder of X-Plane. So by installing usual the navdata update for X-Plane, you automatically now have the latest data available in the 757 FMC.

 

 

The menu's under the X-Plane/Plugin menus are highly extensive (and have been covered in the original B757 review) But here we will highlight the loading of the aircraft with fuel and passengers, note you need the "fuel truck' and "bus" ticked to allow the loading menu to work but you can now change the external fuel before actual engine start which you couldn't do before. It takes time as well to go about its business (this process has been refined even more), and cleverly also up dates the FMC with the correct fuel load and aircraft weight parameters.

 

The cabin announcements are a menu highlight as well, you can enjoy the ramblings going on the background and even through there are already lists of announcements you want even more to press, it is a bit of a lot of mouse movement to get them every-time from the X-Plane menu...  you want a slightly simpler way of just clicking the next one? The cabin requests still keep on donging all the time on the overhead, you either like or hate this feature. But like me you should listen to the requests and comply and they will soon go away. 

 

There is a new feature in being able to use the "scroll" wheel function in v1.2 with three options in...  mouse wheel, - click and + click, if you don't have a wheel mouse like me you can turn it off on the menu. Another 1.2 feature is a "Throttle block" which is request for users that have large complex surround multi-screen cockpits and added throttle protection for "autothrottle disengagment".

 

 

Around the aircraft the menu supplies a lot of ground equipment and support for getting the aircraft ready for flight, all the doors open but the lower cargo ones are fixed shut. Which is shame as it is the only negative in the ground turnaround system.

 

 

Aircraft loaded and clearance given, it is time to start the engines. You can use the on board APU (Auxiliary Power Unit) that makes great sounds when running or in my case use both the GPU (Ground Power Unit) and Starter Unit. Also on the menu is a really good pushback truck that you not only control the speed (forward in pull and pushback) but also can manoeuvre and steer the aircraft directly to where you want it...  perfect. There was a bug with the tow-tractor that created a double version, but that has been fixed in v1.2.

 

The immersion of the simulation with the Boeing 757 is total in most aspects. You are really in there in every aspect of getting the aircraft ready and then delivering it to the runway. The FF/VMAX Boeing 757 Series has had many accolades and you can't deny it with its place as one of the very best simulations in X-Plane. The level of immersion now is totally overwhelming, and select the right scenery to go with the aircraft and you can't deny yourself this experience if you love flying aircraft or dreamed about wanting to be the pilot in the front of the aircraft...  its here if you want it and are willing to involve yourself in the complexity of the simulation.

 

 

The -300 version feels different, certainly with nearly a full passenger load and tanked up fuel tanks. It is quite heavy (256,000lbs) and you need a fair bit of power to get the aircraft moving, it is long as well. You have to be very aware of how well far back from you that tail and central bogie gear really is, and to make the large allowances when turning around the taxiways, if you treat the -300 like the -200 version you will "come a right cropper".

 

 

Departure is via RNAV SID "JOGOR FOUR", And as I am departing by KATL runway 9L I take the southern route towards "GRITZ", then via HYZMN, ZALLE to JOGOR, If you depart via the northern 8L and 8R you have to take the northern departure route to JOGOR and the SID ends at "GUNDE", departure is strictly 10,000ft and 250knts. Rotate is at v2 +15 and a positive climb of 10º is soon slightly a more lower pitch 7º when I switch on the AP (Autopilot).

 

The FMC requires you use 15º flap for takeoff, which is fine but comes with a lot of drag once in the air, so you need to retract you flaps and gain speed as soon as you can. The power of this aircraft is there and it will climb easily at 3000fpm, but keep the B757 a more shallower ptich. A small warning is again that on -300 long tail...  at rotation we don't want a long nasty scratch along the underside of the rear fuselage which is very easy to do, if you are a little heavy on the pull-back on the yoke.

 

 

I really like the target vertical speed marker, it allows you to set your altitude to the correct point in the flightplan (just before a bank or waypoint) it is great for the correct positioning the aircraft during the climb. In most cases the FMC is doing all the work, but you are still quite busy adjusting the correct vertical speed to adjust the overall speed of the aircraft.

 

 

You get a better perspective of the aircraft in the air. You would think it would look too long and too thin like the DC-8 Super 60 series, but actually it looks very nice, to me even better than the -200 version. The B757 is known for its super powerful lifting speed and powerful it feel. You ned to use that power as if you keep the speed too low and not get up there towards the max cruising speed the aircraft will fly at 5º pitch which is quite an uncomfortable angle, with a .80 mach you can reduce that to about 2º. And I was never really comfortable with that cruising profile.

 

 

With the sharper light at being at altitude you had to admire the quality of the cockpit design, it is entirely realistic. There was a few noticeable 3D holes in the cockpit? but they have been addressed in v1.2.

 

 

Internal detailing is superb, you can almost see every flock if wool on the sheepskin seat covers, and in the back the cabin is long and you can see why airlines simply love this human cargo filling aircraft...  The -300 is well used for charter flights and the "pack'em in" carriers as there is plenty of seating to go around for everyone.

 

 

Views out of the windows are tinted, and those pesky window blinds can spoil your view... A trick I found gets around the X-Plane key views that only work in the cockpit. If you unlock the cockpit door (on the overhead panel) and just move your view outside the cockpit area it will then work if you press your (quicklook) set key to the window view you want...  In an aircraft this long it is scrolling lifesaver.

 

 

Quality of the FF/VMAX Boeing 757 is outstanding in X-Plane10. Tracking takes us over the lower states if the U.S.A with Texas sliding by under. You can follow your progress by using the excellent "Prog" page on the FMC, full details on the next waypoints and distance remaining to KLAX. I have tuned both left and right VOR's to KLAX (LAX - 113.60) and OCEANSIDE (OCN - 115.30) to see our distance and position.

 

 

STAR arrival is by "Ocean Two" with the entrance point at VOR-JULIAN (JLI - 114.00), This is the southern approach into Los Angeles that brings you down to the Californian coast just north of San Diego. It is a more of a smoother descent approach which goes around the lower part of the series mountain chains that surround Los Angeles. You track over the Salton Sea, before descending to JULIAN. entrance height is 7000ft, but I had permission to go directly to "OCEANSIDE" at 6000ft.

 

 

The track is 272º, but you feel you are going right out to sea. However you are not but just hugging the coastline, and soon Long Beach is off to your starboard side. At SHILY waypoint you do a hard left turn to put your position more out to sea for the approach, so you go left, right at DOYLE and right again at EXERT to the direct heading of Runway 07L at LAX.

 

 

As the flaps go down to "Full" and once in the ILS beam I could set the landing speed at 175Knts. You can set the Airbrakes to "auto" by touching the top of the lever, but the B757 has a built in auto wing brake system anyway. Gear down and you get that wonderful rushing of air in the cockpit like you do on FF/VMAX's excellent Boeing 777 Series.

 

 

KLAX's runways look a little confusing on approach, until a certain point I thought I was going land on a taxiway? But then 07L became more clearer. Over the fence and the touchdown was a good light touch, and once the front tyres touched it full reverse thrust. I have my REV thrust set out with a trigger on my joystick to open the engine doors, and then full throttle up for the thrust. Closing up is slightly harder? You have to make completely sure the throttle is completely back in the idle detent before re-triggering the doors to close...  and this can take a few moments as the engine displays turn yellow before noting the green closed doors position. You have to get your low speed right because if you too close to your exit taxiway, you may put up the throttle too early and trigger another REV function, or slow to a complete stop because the slow closing REV thrust door process is not complete. There has been added now in the upgrade a throttle protection for autothrottle disengagement, but either way you have time it just right to get the re-applied power right to keep the process of the aircraft moving to the right speed you require on the side taxiway...  

 

FlightFactor/VMAX have done a bit of fine-tuning in the tire grip in cross wind taxi/takeoff/landing situations in v1.2, this also applies with improved course guidance in "autoland" with cross winds (before in certain conditions strange things happened in the final landing sequence), and in both cases here the aircraft seems more stable under the ILS and better for taxiing around the airports, you feel the weight just a little bit better when manoeuvring around airports, but note significant difference between a light aircraft and a very on the limit Gross Weight machine. The -300 version is quite more heavier than the -200 at high weights, and you feel that and it is significant in the taxi mode.

 

 

After the intensity of the landing you can now relax and enjoy a few more cabin announcements?  go on you know you really want to press that announcement again...

 

 

Unlike Atlanta, LAX feels much more tighter with the longer -300, you feel like you are in a big heavy situation (A340, B747, B777) but you have to actually access areas that are set out for the smaller single-aisle aircraft (A320, B737) and the gates are certainly tighter. You taxi/turning skills have to be absolutely exact to get the right point to swing the aircraft around into the gate position, those rear bogies are a long way behind you and it is not very easy to get it right, but with a little practise it can be done...    Okay you really need a lot of practise as it is very tight..

 

 

The default aircraft packages come with the standard four liveries per aircraft, and the -300 has the Boeing House, British Airways, Lufthansa and Air France.

 

 

You can also for the -300 purchase sets of ten liveries in packages for US$10 per-package and they include...   North American Livery Packs#1 and #2 - Europe Livery Packs#1, #2 and #3 - Middle East/Africa Pack - Russian Livery Pack.

 

Obviously you can't show all the liveries here, but here is a good selection of what is available...

 

 

Livery quality is excellent, standouts are the Delta I used for the upgrade review, Dutchbird, Icelandair, NWA-Northwest Airlines, Mexicana. There is a very nice new American Airlines livery but not the older version.

 

If you have collected all of the liveries for all of the variants, then your livery folder will be bulging with just under 200 (192) liveries to choose from...  that is a lot of choice.

 

Summary

The basics of the v1.2 upgrade is just a fine-tuning of the already well refined Boeing 757 package from FF/VMAX, just really a nip and tuck here. But the differences count where you need them. The FMC is already one of the very best in X-Plane, and a few small refinements have been done here as well in fixing the oscillating FMS-commanded speed in step climb, TFC indication to ND, enter PBD/PBPB waypoints on the RTE page, CTD fixes for blanks in "waypoint on legs" and "direct-to function" on legs pages. All small stuff but the FMC is the complete package, quality is evident in that when a "route" is completed and saved, it can be recalled as perfectly after it was saved as it was when you completed it the first time. The satisfaction of knowing that you can start up the aircraft and load in a flightplan perfectly, and just only then to set your "prefs" and you are ready to go is a huge timesaver and gives you back maximum enjoyment of the aircraft, Too many FMC's out there are still far to messy after reloading a fightplan and need as much time resetting them, that it is actually easier to just do the whole flightplan again from scratch...  you don't get that here, you load, you set and you go!

 

The Boeing 757-300 variant now included in the package is another highlight, and I love it far more than the -200 version. It makes the B757 a more exciting aircraft not only to look at but also to fly. This v1.2 upgrade also refines all the variants of the aircraft to the current X-Plane 10.30+ requirements.

 

Any novice reading this update review could think they are totally out of their depth with this aircraft. There is no doubting the depth of systems and the skills required to fly this machine to its full capabilities. But any aircraft basics make them able to fly and that is still the case here, and their are quick start modes to get the aircraft ready to fly built in to get you around the complexity.

 

Any negatives? very few, but I found the aircraft always a little too pitch up for me, It was hard to dial out that 4-5 degree pitch up out of the flying, lots of speed and being close to high mach numbers helps but it still was always there. And no opening cargo doors leaves you just one step away from perfect at the gate.

 

Accolades are thrown about a lot of the FlightFactor/VMAX Boeing 757 Series as being the very best simulation in X-Plane it is also officially licensed by the Boeing © Corporation, and no doubt it is in the very top tier of quality and standards that come with these aircraft. Different aircraft can mean different things to many different users, so a complete outright winner is never going to happen in simulation. But now with the added bonus of the stretched -300 variant as part of the line up, it is now as formidable a package as ever and now so refined and complete, No doubt the Boeing 757 Series is excellent and even now the best in this category.

 

 

 

The Boeing 757 Professional "Extended" Series v1.2 by VMAX package is now available from the New X-Plane.Org Store here :  Boeing 757 Professional Extended and is priced at only US$79.95

 

Includes:

• Boeing 757-200
• Boeing 757-200F Cargo version
  • 757-200/200F  with Rolls Royce Engines - RB211-535E4 
  • 757-200/200F with Pratt and Whitney Engines  - PW2037
• Boeing 757-300
  • 757-300  with Rolls Royce Engines - RB211-535E4

 

The Boeing 757 Professional Series v1.2 by VMAX is available from the New X-Plane.Org Store here :  Boeing 757 Professional and is priced at only US$59.95 (you can upgrade to the above "extended" package at any time for $20)

 

Includes:

• Boeing 757-200
  • 757-200/200F  with Rolls Royce Engines - RB211-535E4 
  • 757-200/200F with Pratt and Whitney Engines  - PW2037

For more information of this aircraft:

The original release X-Plane Review's review of the

 

For more information on the variant release FlightFactor/VMAX 757-200SF - Freighter:

See here X-Plane Review's review of the

 

Boeing 757 livery packages are available here: Boeing 757-200 and Boeing 757-300 and are priced at US$10 per package.

 

Installation : Download for the "Extended" package is 560.20mb that is unzipped to 856.90mb to your X-Plane "Aircraft" Folder (full package with all liveries is a whopping 3.23gb!) A serial key activation is required for installation (I recommend a full desktop restart to reset the SASL plugin after key activation!)

 

Note Important! it was found that window PC users require the  Microsoft  C++  Redistributable  2013  64bit update to be download and installed before activation.

 

Developer Site: facebook

Dev Thread : X-Plane.org

 

Requirements:

Important: Microsoft  C++  Redistributable  2013  64bit is required!

64bit X-Plane 10 and OS are  required. Windows Vista/7/8 64bit or Mac OSX 10.7/10.8/10.9 or Linux Ubuntu 14.04LTS or compatible (older versions are not supported)

X-Plane 10 fully updated. 64 bit mode. (X-Plane 9 not supported. x).

1GB VRAM (2GB VRAM Recommended).

Current version : 1.2 (last updated March 14th, 2015)

 

Features Include:

Fully Functional Professional FMS and EFIS System

 

    Custom designed Flight Management Computer, integrated with other plane systems

    Custom programmed LNAV logic for terminal procedures from updatable database

    VNAV-managed climbs and descends

    Optimum cruise performance and step climb calculation

    Two independent analogue instrument sets for captain and first officer

    Two independently simulated EFIS (EADI/EHSI configuration) for captain and first officer

    Dual-FMS with two independently working CDUs

    Working instrument comparators

    Triple IRS and triple symbol generator systems with realistic instrument source switching

 

 

    Dual air-data computers with custom failure modes and source switching

    Three independent nav/ils receivers

    Realistic inertial and radio position updating - this plane has no GPS ,so you can see the individual inaccuracies of those systems

    Triple-channel autopilot with realistic dependencies

    Fail operational and fail passive auto land with mode degradations based on system failures

    Load company routes generated by Professional FlightPlanner X (or other compatible programs) directly into the FMC

    FMC can be used on external touchscreen or tablet, optimized for the Retina iPad

 

Advanced 3D modeling and features

 

    On-screen Menus

    Accurate dimensions based on drawings provided by Boeing

    Very detailed exterior modelling with extensive use of normal maps

    Super high resolution 3D cockpit with every switch functional

    Multilayer dynamic reflections on all glass objects

    Spatial rain simulation with lots of details

    Very detailed passenger cabin graphics, including galleys and lavatories

    Real working oxygen masks both in cockpit and cabin, dynamic window shaders

    Custom programmed particle system to visualize failures: generates smoke, fire and sparks

 

    Detailed and deep simulation of almost every system in the real aircraft

    Custom air and pressure system

    Electrical system with all AC and DC busses modelled

    Multistage custom failure system - over 150 more failures than X-Plane

    Ability to fix failure by following proper procedure

    200 Mb of custom sounds - In-cockpit custom sounds -3D stereo engine sounds

 

Review by Stephen Dutton

 

16th March 2015

 

Copyright©2015: X-Plane Reviews

 

Review System Specifications:

Computer System:     

- 2.66 Ghz Intel Core i5 iMac 27”

- 6 Gb 1067 Mhz DDR3

- ATI Radeon HD 6970M 2048 mb

- Seagate 256gb SSD 

Software:   

- Mac OS Yosemite 10.10.1

- X-Plane 10 Global ver 10.35 (final)

Addons

- Saitek x52 Pro system Joystick and Throttle

- Bose - Soundlink Mini

Scenery

- KATL - Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta Intl Airport by Butnaru (X-Plane.OrgStore) $23.95

- KLAX - Los Angeles International 1.01 by MisterX6 (X-Plane.org) Free

 

v1.2 Change log:

-added the 757-300RR model (available only in extended package)

-optimized the 3D model for 10.30 and above

-fixed a bug with real/AT throttle competition while in EPR mode (full control is given to AT)

-added mouse wheel control for knobs with 3 options.

-fixed incorrect eng anti-ice EICAS messages

-fixed a bug with tug double use

-fixed some 3D holes in the cockpit

-added throttle protection for autothrottle disengagement

-added TFC indication to ND

-fixed a bug with inability maintain to FMS-commanded cruise speed lower than 310 bellow 10000 feet

-fixed a bug oscillating FMS-commanded speed in step climb

-fixed CTD when using direct-to without active leg

-corrected ref speed dependence on flap settings

-fixed the mysterious ILS excursions on some autolands

-removed the need to use "external radio" option (works automatically)

-external fuel change is possible before engine start (e.g. FSA refuel compatible)

-implemented the ability to enter PBD/PBPB waypoints on the RTE page

-fixed CTD during entering waypoint on legs page when it is "blank"

-fixed CTD during use of direct-to function on legs page when it is "blank"

-the 757 will now load the navdata from the Custom Data/GNS430/navdata/ folder of X-Plane. So by installing the navdata update for X-Plane, you automatically have the latest data in the 757 also

-fixed CTD when pushing an empty LLSK with empty scratchpad on legs page