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A few places to begin, from the aircraft’s story to the people who fly it.
Meet the aircraft
The 757 first flew in 1982 and entered service in 1983. It paired a new wing and large underwing engines with a two-pilot electronic-instrument cockpit. The -200 became the main production version, joined later by the stretched -300 and dedicated freight developments. Its cockpit shares substantial design thinking with the wider 767, but the airframes and systems remain distinct.
Aircraft background
Wikipedia contributors · Read more ↗An all-rounder with a few cockpit irritations
The author values the 757 as an aircraft that gets varied work done without demanding constant attention to its systems. The controls feel somewhat heavy, which the writer prefers to the lighter touch of the A300 previously flown. The cockpit is confined but comfortable once seated, with a good view ahead. Less welcome are the overhead fuel indications and the many separate lighting dimmers.
Daily Kos Community · October 2013. Self-reported operating impressions; airline and exact fleet configuration not independently established.
Daily Kos Community · Read more ↗Checklists that recognise actions or provide assistance
Interactive checklists detect completed actions. An optional helper can perform actions while the user checks them, and a tutorial mode supplies visual prompts. These provide several ways to approach cockpit preparation within the same add-on.
Boeing 757 · FlightFactor · FlightFactor · X-Plane 11 · X-Plane 12
FlightFactor via authorized store · Read more ↗Into the cockpit
YouTube Just Planes · 22 min ·
Piloting the BOEING 757 into Seattle | Cockpit Views
An Icelandair 757-200 approaches and lands at Seattle-Tacoma.
Real aircraft · Boeing 757
Watch on YouTube ↗Preview images are served by AirframeDB. Videos open on YouTube only when you choose to watch.
Meet Boeing 757
The 757 first flew in 1982 and entered service in 1983. It paired a new wing and large underwing engines with a two-pilot electronic-instrument cockpit. The -200 became the main production version, joined later by the stretched -300 and dedicated freight developments.
Its cockpit shares substantial design thinking with the wider 767, but the airframes and systems remain distinct. FlightFactor's simulator products offer specific engine, passenger and cargo configurations.
Boeing 757
Aircraft type designators
Use the code for the model you are flying. The linked authority lists the applicable aircraft.
History & design
Development milestones
First flight: February 19, 1982 ( 1982-02-19 )
Wikipedia contributors · Boeing 757 ↗Boeing 757 · family/variant named by the source · Wikipedia revision 1372303891
Pilot accounts
An all-rounder with a few cockpit irritations
The author values the 757 as an aircraft that gets varied work done without demanding constant attention to its systems. The controls feel somewhat heavy, which the writer prefers to the lighter touch of the A300 previously flown. The cockpit is confined but comfortable once seated, with a good view ahead. Less welcome are the overhead fuel indications and the many separate lighting dimmers.
The favourable overall impression comes with practical frustrations. The author found the flight-management computer slow to respond to a succession of changes and considered descent planning particularly important because losing height and speed together could be difficult. Landings were usually satisfying, and the option to put aside automation and hand-fly remained part of the aircraft’s appeal. These are an individual pilot’s impressions of the fleet described in 2013, rather than a measured comparison of aircraft performance.
Daily Kos Community · October 2013. Self-reported operating impressions; airline and exact fleet configuration not independently established.
Read the full account · Daily Kos Community ↗Making a touring aircraft part of the band’s working life
Dickinson’s interview describes a flying career built alongside music, through lessons, ratings, instructing and early commercial work. He enjoyed the sense that planning and conducting a flight was a subject he could never completely exhaust. After moving into airline flying, the 757 became his favourite jet, retaining an appeal beyond the practical business of getting from one engagement to another.
Using an Astraeus aircraft to carry Iron Maiden and its equipment also solved a touring problem. A passenger-and-cargo arrangement could move the band across continents without the usual combination of coaches and trucks, while the aircraft’s conspicuous band markings became publicity in their own right. The profile also shows his continued affection for small aircraft and teaching. For Dickinson, flying was a separate and absorbing craft, even when the people in the cabin were his own bandmates.
Pilot magazine · archival profile of the Iron Maiden singer and commercial pilot. Recollections include Astraeus 757-200 touring operations.
Read the full account · Pilot magazine ↗Giving a new first officer the credit for a difficult arrival
Durbin recalls supervising a new airline first officer on a dark, snowy arrival at Boston. The other pilot already had substantial C-5 experience, but this would be only his third actual airliner landing. Near the airport, traffic in the harbour prompted a late choice between changing to the parallel runway and making another approach. Durbin asked what his colleague wanted to do and watched him complete the runway change and landing smoothly.
Once parked, Durbin sent the first officer to stand at the cabin door while he finished the shutdown work. The passengers thanked the younger pilot as they left, an acknowledgement Durbin wanted him to hear personally. Later, the first officer was late meeting him in the hotel lobby because he had called his wife to tell her about the landing. The delay was entirely understandable to his check captain.
The Aviation Geek Club · August 2026 retrospective. United 757 check-pilot experience; date and exact variant of the Boston flight are not stated.
Read the full account · The Aviation Geek Club ↗In your simulator
Systems, equipment and documentation for each developer’s aircraft.
X-Plane 11 · X-Plane 12Boeing 757 · FlightFactor
FlightFactor · Released
Boeing 757 · FlightFactor
FlightFactor · Released
Aircraft specifications
Published figures for the named real-aircraft variant. Simulator equipment and performance can differ.
| Specification | Published value |
|---|---|
| Length | 155 ft 3 in (47.3 m) |
| Wingspan | 124 ft 10 in (38.0 m) |
| Height | 44 ft 6 in (13.6 m) |
| Wing area | 1,994.0 sq ft (185.25 m² ) |
| Empty weight | 130,440 lb (59,160 kg) |
| Max takeoff weight | 255,000 lb (115,660 kg) |
| Powerplant | 2 × Pratt & Whitney PW2040 high-bypass turbofan engines, 40,100 lbf (178 kN) thrust each |
| Maximum speed | Mach 0.86 |
| Range | 4,500 mi (7,250 km, 3,915 nmi) |
| Service ceiling | 42,000 ft (13,000 m) |
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
Checklists that recognise actions or provide assistanceBoeing 757 · FlightFactor · FlightFactor · X-Plane 11 · X-Plane 12
Interactive checklists detect completed actions. An optional helper can perform actions while the user checks them, and a tutorial mode supplies visual prompts. These provide several ways to approach cockpit preparation within the same add-on.
757 v2 · Interactive Checklists, Procedures, and auto-helper
FlightFactor via authorized store · Read the source ↗Failures and maintenance can persistBoeing 757 · FlightFactor · FlightFactor · X-Plane 11 · X-Plane 12
The published description says wear and misuse carry over to the next flight. A tablet-style menu provides maintenance and failure monitoring alongside fuel, passenger and cargo loading, so a saved aircraft need not begin every flight in fresh condition.
757 v2 · Custom Systems and Failure model; On Screen menus
FlightFactor via authorized store · Read the source ↗Pilot account
An all-rounder with a few cockpit irritationsDaily Kos Community · October 2013. Self-reported operating impressions; airline and exact fleet configuration not independently established.
The author values the 757 as an aircraft that gets varied work done without demanding constant attention to its systems. The controls feel somewhat heavy, which the writer prefers to the lighter touch of the A300 previously flown. The cockpit is confined but comfortable once seated, with a good view ahead. Less welcome are the overhead fuel indications and the many separate lighting dimmers. The favourable overall impression comes with practical frustrations.
Major Kong (published handle)
Daily Kos Community · Read the source ↗Making a touring aircraft part of the band’s working lifePilot magazine · archival profile of the Iron Maiden singer and commercial pilot. Recollections include Astraeus 757-200 touring operations.
Dickinson’s interview describes a flying career built alongside music, through lessons, ratings, instructing and early commercial work. He enjoyed the sense that planning and conducting a flight was a subject he could never completely exhaust. After moving into airline flying, the 757 became his favourite jet, retaining an appeal beyond the practical business of getting from one engagement to another.
Bruce Dickinson
Pilot magazine · Read the source ↗Read the original documentation from the people who created it. Manuals open on their publisher’s website.
Manual
X-Plane aircraft and avionics manualsLaminar ResearchAircraft background
Boeing 757Wikipedia contributors · Research background · Wikipedia revision 1372303891 · retrieved 2026-09-12Resource
FlightFactor 757 v2 published specificationFlightFactor via authorized store FlightFactor productsFlightFactorProduct
757 v2 ProfessionalFlightFactor · Official developer / designated store catalogue · checked 2026-09-12 757 v2 Avionics UpgradeFlightFactor · Official developer / designated store catalogue · checked 2026-09-12 757 v2 Professional Extended upgradeFlightFactor · Official developer / designated store catalogue · checked 2026-09-12 757 v2 Professional Modern AvionicsFlightFactor / X-Plane.org Store · Official catalogue reviewed 15 September 2026Type 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 · 6 profile choices
FlightFactor 757-200
FlightFactor · Free and Pro · Revision 5 · Inherited starting point
X-Plane 12
FlightFactor 757-200: The selected powered-control approximation gives yoke resistance independently of which engine or passenger/freighter configuration is selected.
FlightFactor 757-200SF
FlightFactor · Free and Pro · Revision 3 · Inherited starting point
X-Plane 12
FlightFactor 757-200SF: The selected powered-control approximation gives yoke resistance independently of which engine or passenger/freighter configuration is selected.
FlightFactor 757-300
FlightFactor · Free and Pro · Revision 3 · Inherited starting point
X-Plane 12
FlightFactor 757-300: The selected powered-control approximation gives yoke resistance independently of which engine or passenger/freighter configuration is selected.
Boeing 757-200
Free and Pro · Revision 3 · Partial review
X-Plane 11 · X-Plane 12
Boeing 757-200: The selected powered-control approximation gives yoke resistance independently of which engine or passenger/freighter configuration is selected.
Boeing 757-200SF
Free and Pro · Revision 1 · Partial review
X-Plane 11 · X-Plane 12
Boeing 757-200SF: The selected powered-control approximation gives yoke resistance independently of which engine or passenger/freighter configuration is selected.
Boeing 757-300
Free and Pro · Revision 1 · Partial review
X-Plane 11 · X-Plane 12
Boeing 757-300: The selected powered-control approximation gives yoke resistance independently of which engine or passenger/freighter configuration is selected.
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