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A few places to begin, from the aircraft’s story to the people who fly it.
Meet the aircraft
The A400M occupies the space between smaller tactical transports and larger strategic airlifters. Its high wing, rear loading ramp and four large propellers are organised around moving troops and bulky cargo. Airbus developed it as a replacement for older transport fleets including the Transall C-160. Its turboprops and modern electronic cockpit make an unusual combination in a simulator.
Aircraft background
Wikipedia contributors · Read more ↗A new transport brings a memorable view of Table Mountain
Christoph had wanted to visit the cockpit whenever his family travelled by air. After nine years flying the Transall, conversion to the A400M brought a much more automated working environment. He still found takeoff exciting, describing the aircraft’s acceleration as something that brought both a smile and goosebumps.
Bundeswehr German-language interview · July 2021. Lufttransportgeschwader 62 pilot; the source publishes only a surname initial.
Bundeswehr · Read more ↗Use the cockpit keyboard for flight-management entries
The guide specifies the KCCU keyboard for manual entries. A physical keyboard can trigger other simulator controls; ENT confirms variable-length fields.
A400M Atlas · Microsoft Flight Simulator · MSFS 2024
Microsoft / aircraft developers · Read more ↗Into the cockpit
YouTube Gung Ho Vids · 6 min ·
Royal Air Force Airbus A400M Atlas • Flight & Cockpit Video
Cockpit and flight footage from an RAF A400M visit to Scott Air Force Base.
Real aircraft · Airbus A400M Atlas
Watch on YouTube ↗Preview images are served by AirframeDB. Videos open on YouTube only when you choose to watch.
Meet Airbus A400M Atlas
The A400M occupies the space between smaller tactical transports and larger strategic airlifters. Its high wing, rear loading ramp and four large propellers are organised around moving troops and bulky cargo. Airbus developed it as a replacement for older transport fleets including the Transall C-160.
The simulated aircraft combines cargo handling and transport missions with an electronic flight deck, whose controls are described in the included manual.
Airbus A400M Atlas
Airbus → · Explore the family →
Airbus A400M Atlas
Wikipedia contributors · Airbus A400M Atlas ↗Microsoft Flight Simulator · MSFS 2024 →Aircraft type designators
Use the code for the model you are flying. The linked authority lists the applicable aircraft.
History & design
Training and transport can share the same journey
Ralph’s 2025 circumnavigation combined copilot and loadmaster training, a public appearance at Avalon and a cargo pickup in Washington. Newer crew members gained experience far from home during the A400M deployment.
Bundeswehr · Abu Dhabi, Australia, Washington and Wunstorf: around the world ↗Operator interview; one particular deployment rather than a standard itinerary
Development milestones
First flight: 11 December 2009
Wikipedia contributors · Airbus A400M Atlas ↗Airbus A400M Atlas · family/variant named by the source · Wikipedia revision 1371476720
Pilot accounts
A new transport brings a memorable view of Table Mountain
Christoph had wanted to visit the cockpit whenever his family travelled by air. After nine years flying the Transall, conversion to the A400M brought a much more automated working environment. He still found takeoff exciting, describing the aircraft’s acceleration as something that brought both a smile and goosebumps.
One particularly enjoyable assignment came during his aircraft-commander training in 2017, when he flew the type to Cape Town. Clear weather on arrival and departure allowed the crew to enjoy a view around Table Mountain. His interview sets that memory beside the more routine work of carrying people and equipment to Lithuania. Transport flying appealed to him for its crew friendships and the variety of places the job could take him.
Bundeswehr German-language interview · July 2021. Lufttransportgeschwader 62 pilot; the source publishes only a surname initial.
Read the full account · Bundeswehr ↗A final trip around the world still has students to teach
Ralph regarded the round-the-world journey as a kind of farewell assignment before his planned retirement. It was also a working trip: two copilots were building experience through line training, and the loadmasters had younger colleagues to teach. The route joined training, an Australian airshow and a cargo pickup in Washington.
At Avalon, meeting other crews and welcoming visitors into the aircraft made the presentation enjoyable. The destinations sounded like a holiday itinerary, but Ralph emphasised the need for fuel stops, rest and adjustment to changing time zones. After weeks away, home had a renewed attraction.
Bundeswehr German-language interview · June 2025. A400M commander on a three-and-a-half-week journey including the Avalon Airshow; surname withheld by the source.
Read the full account · Bundeswehr ↗Long-distance flying makes crew concentration a central concern
Knoll explained that the nonstop Hawaii trial required two crews to alternate through a very long working day. Tanker support came from the wing’s own A400Ms, and the route passed close to the polar region. The flight brought together tasks that the crews had previously practised in the simulator.
His strongest emphasis was on concentration. Having personally flown close formation, he described how unusual it feels to bring two large transports near each other, and how refuelling demands still greater precision. Maintaining that focus after many hours awake added another challenge to the trial. The interview does not identify Knoll as the sole operating pilot of the flight.
Bundeswehr German-language interview · June 2026. A400M pilot and wing commander discussing the unit’s Hawaii trial; the article does not establish that he personally piloted its entire route.
Read the full account · Bundeswehr ↗In your simulator
Systems, equipment and documentation for each developer’s aircraft.
MSFS 2024A400M Atlas
Microsoft Flight Simulator · Released
A400M Atlas
Microsoft Flight Simulator · Released
Aircraft specifications
Published figures for the named real-aircraft variant. Simulator equipment and performance can differ.
| Specification | Published value |
|---|---|
| Length | 45.1 m (148 ft 0 in) |
| Wingspan | 42.4 m (139 ft 1 in) |
| Height | 14.7 m (48 ft 3 in) |
| Wing area | 225.1 m² (2,384 sq ft) |
| Empty weight | 78,600 kg (173,283 lb) |
| Max takeoff weight | 141,000 kg (310,852 lb) |
| Powerplant | 4 × Europrop TP400-D6 turboprop, 8,200 kW (11,000 hp) each |
| Propellers | 8-bladed Ratier-Figeac variable pitch propellers with feathering and reversing capability , 5.3 m (17 ft 5 in) diameter |
| Maximum speed | Mach 0.72 |
| Cruise speed | 781 km/h (485 mph, 422 kn) at 9,450 m (31,000 ft) |
| Range | 3,300 km (2,100 mi, 1,800 nmi) at max payload Range with 30-tonne payload: 4,500 km (2,450 nmi) Range with 20-tonne payload: 6,400 km (3,450 nmi) |
| Service ceiling | 12,200 m (40,000 ft) |
Manuals & resources
Find your next read
Choose a topic for a short introduction and a link to the original source. Simulator references identify the developer and edition they cover.
Simulator documentation
Use the cockpit keyboard for flight-management entriesA400M Atlas · Microsoft Flight Simulator · MSFS 2024
The guide specifies the KCCU keyboard for manual entries. A physical keyboard can trigger other simulator controls; ENT confirms variable-length fields.
iniBuilds A400M manual v1.0 · PDF p.25; OCR checked against rendered original
Microsoft / aircraft developers · Read the source ↗Import a prepared route from the initialization pageA400M Atlas · Microsoft Flight Simulator · MSFS 2024
The INIT REQUEST control imports a SimBrief plan. Departure runway, SID and transition selection then uses the temporary-flight-plan confirmation.
A400M manual · PDF pp.25–27; documented simulator workflow
Microsoft / aircraft developers · Read the source ↗A visual cockpit guide for the AtlasA400M Atlas · Microsoft Flight Simulator · MSFS 2024
The Atlas uses multifunction displays and keyboard/cursor control units for flight-management entries. The iniBuilds guide shows how those controls connect to predictions for time, distance, speed and altitude. Its illustrated cockpit maps are useful for locating the displays and their associated keyboards in this MSFS implementation.
iniBuilds A400M manual v1.0, 18 September 2024; documented simulator behaviour · PDF pp.22–23
Microsoft / aircraft developers · Read the source ↗The cargo door needs hydraulic powerA400M Atlas · Microsoft Flight Simulator · MSFS 2024
In the simulated Atlas, a cargo-door command can produce an insufficient-pressure message. The manual traces this to the blue hydraulic system and identifies its guarded electric-pump control on the aft overhead panel. Door operation therefore involves both the tablet command and the aircraft's powered systems.
iniBuilds A400M manual v1.0, 18 September 2024; documented simulator behaviour · PDF pp.16–17
Microsoft / aircraft developers · Read the source ↗Checklists inside the aircraft displaysA400M Atlas · Microsoft Flight Simulator · MSFS 2024
The NORM button opens the electronic checklist in the lower part of the engine/warning display. A pedestal joystick selects items and the ECAM check button confirms them. Some entries require manual acknowledgement; others detect a switch position and change colour automatically, including the manual's seat-belt example.
iniBuilds A400M manual v1.0, 18 September 2024; documented simulator behaviour · PDF p.34
Microsoft / aircraft developers · Read the source ↗Pilot account
A new transport brings a memorable view of Table MountainBundeswehr German-language interview · July 2021. Lufttransportgeschwader 62 pilot; the source publishes only a surname initial.
Christoph had wanted to visit the cockpit whenever his family travelled by air. After nine years flying the Transall, conversion to the A400M brought a much more automated working environment. He still found takeoff exciting, describing the aircraft’s acceleration as something that brought both a smile and goosebumps. One particularly enjoyable assignment came during his aircraft-commander training in 2017, when he flew the type to Cape Town.
Christoph S.
Bundeswehr · Read the source ↗A final trip around the world still has students to teachBundeswehr German-language interview · June 2025. A400M commander on a three-and-a-half-week journey including the Avalon Airshow; surname withheld by the source.
Ralph regarded the round-the-world journey as a kind of farewell assignment before his planned retirement. It was also a working trip: two copilots were building experience through line training, and the loadmasters had younger colleagues to teach. The route joined training, an Australian airshow and a cargo pickup in Washington. At Avalon, meeting other crews and welcoming visitors into the aircraft made the presentation enjoyable.
Ralph K.
Bundeswehr · Read the source ↗Read the original documentation from the people who created it. Manuals open on their publisher’s website.
Manual
Airbus A400MMicrosoft / aircraft developers Microsoft Flight Simulator aircraft manualsMicrosoft / aircraft developersAircraft background
Airbus A400M AtlasWikipedia contributors · Research background · Wikipedia revision 1371476720 · retrieved 2026-09-12Resource
MSFS 2024 FAQ and edition aircraft inventoryMicrosoftType designator
ICAO Doc 8643 — aircraft type designatorsInternational Civil Aviation Organization · Public search data retrieved 2026-09-14; authority update 2026-09-03Built-in force-feedback profiles
Read the documentary basis, editable starting settings and remaining questions for the aircraft you fly. Each explanation refers to the exact profile revision shown.
Catalogue programme-20261022-v1 · 1 profile choice
Airbus A400M Atlas
Free and Pro · Revision 2 · Partial review
MSFS 2024
Airbus A400M Atlas: The selected fixed centre is a fly-by-wire control approximation; the available manufacturer overview does not quantify mechanical inceptor feel.
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