Start here
A few places to begin, from the aircraft’s story to the people who fly it.
Meet the aircraft
The Stratoliner drew on Boeing's B-17 engineering while using a broad circular fuselage for passengers. Four radial engines powered the low-wing, tailwheel aircraft. It entered commercial service in 1940 and represented an early move toward flying above much of the weather. Only a small number were built, and individual aircraft had eventful later histories.
Aircraft background
Wikipedia contributors · Read more ↗A glass cockpit that still offered a restricted view
Buck remembered the Stratoliner as an aircraft that demanded attention on the ground. Its appearance also gave a misleading impression of what the pilot could see. From outside, the generous wraparound glazing suggested a clear view; from his seat, the windscreen seemed distant, with the surrounding cockpit creating the impression of looking along a tunnel.
TWA pilot’s memoir remarks reproduced by C. V. Glines. The source supplies a brief recollection within an airline history, rather than a complete flight report.
HistoryNet / Aviation History · Read more ↗Early pressurised-airliner cockpit equipment
The linked 2023 guide describes the MSFS 2020 cockpit. It provides equipment background; this older manual does not establish unchanged MSFS 2024 controls.
307 Stratoliner · Microsoft Flight Simulator · MSFS 2024
Microsoft / aircraft developers · Read more ↗Into the cockpit
YouTube Boeing Classics · 3 min ·
Boeing Model 307 Stratoliner in Service with PanAm and TWA | Boeing Classics
An archival look at the Boeing Stratoliner's airline service.
Real aircraft · Boeing 307 Stratoliner
Watch on YouTube ↗Preview images are served by AirframeDB. Videos open on YouTube only when you choose to watch.
Meet Boeing 307 Stratoliner
The Stratoliner drew on Boeing's B-17 engineering while using a broad circular fuselage for passengers. Four radial engines powered the low-wing, tailwheel aircraft. It entered commercial service in 1940 and represented an early move toward flying above much of the weather.
Only a small number were built, and individual aircraft had eventful later histories. A flight engineer managed its period systems, with those crew responsibilities represented in the simulator manual.
Boeing 307 Stratoliner
Aircraft type designators
A model-specific ICAO or FAA designator has not been confirmed in the references reviewed for this aircraft.
History & design
A second restoration begins with the same volunteers
After the 2002 ditching, restoration manager Gary Knowlen contacted more than seventy volunteers who had worked on the Stratoliner. All agreed to return. Gantenbein describes the aircraft being washed after its recovery and the team assessing damaged materials with the benefit of parts and templates from its earlier work.
Air & Space / Smithsonian · Restoration: Soggy Stratoliner ↗September 2002 restoration report; early accident-cause speculation is not adopted
Development milestones
First flight: December 31, 1938
Developed from: Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress
Wikipedia contributors · Boeing 307 Stratoliner ↗Boeing 307 Stratoliner · family/variant named by the source · Wikipedia revision 1367840442
Pilot accounts
A glass cockpit that still offered a restricted view
Buck remembered the Stratoliner as an aircraft that demanded attention on the ground. Its appearance also gave a misleading impression of what the pilot could see. From outside, the generous wraparound glazing suggested a clear view; from his seat, the windscreen seemed distant, with the surrounding cockpit creating the impression of looking along a tunnel.
Glines places those reservations alongside the warmer memories of other TWA pilots recorded in Robert Serling’s company history. The aircraft could be admired for its contribution to passenger flying while retaining awkward details for the people operating it.
TWA pilot’s memoir remarks reproduced by C. V. Glines. The source supplies a brief recollection within an airline history, rather than a complete flight report.
Read the full account · HistoryNet / Aviation History ↗The last delivery flight brings a restored airliner to its museum
Nelson brought the restored Stratoliner from Pittsburgh to Dulles on its final flight. A flyover preceded the landing, and applause greeted the aircraft as it taxied to a stop. The arrival completed a journey from Seattle with stops at Oshkosh and Pittsburgh.
His reaction combined affection for the aeroplane with a strong sense of travelling into the past. He praised its beauty and its place in the development of passenger flying. The delivery followed years of restoration work, including recovery from a ditching. For the museum, the aircraft’s arrival turned that effort into an exhibit ready for a new audience.
Pilot’s reaction reported after the August 2003 delivery of Clipper Flying Cloud.
Read the full account · Seattle Post-Intelligencer ↗An expected two hours of fuel becomes an emergency
Carriker told investigators that the preflight discussion had led him to expect about two hours of endurance. He heard that the remaining preparation included checking the tanks, then completed a walkaround and joined the crew’s checklist. The flight engineer’s response indicated that fuel, oil and hydraulics had been checked.
On the return towards Boeing Field, Carriker was flying when a low fuel-pressure warning appeared. He switched on a boost pump, then heard the engineer report that the aircraft had no fuel. The captain took back control and subsequently ditched in Elliott Bay. The NTSB’s final findings identified fuel exhaustion, inadequate preflight fuel determination and a crew-communication factor. Those findings accompany the recollection; they do not establish that Carriker made the ditching.
First officer’s account to investigators of the 28 March 2002 flight. James Wallace’s linked report identifies Carriker; the NTSB describes him by crew role.
Read the full account · National Transportation Safety Board ↗NTSB releases report on Stratoliner crash
James Wallace · 20 February 2003; identifies first officer Michael Carriker
In your simulator
Systems, equipment and documentation for each developer’s aircraft.
Compare simulator versions →MSFS 2024307 Stratoliner
Microsoft Flight Simulator · Released
307 Stratoliner
Microsoft Flight Simulator · Released
MSFS 2020307 Stratoliner
Microsoft Flight Simulator · Released
307 Stratoliner
Microsoft Flight Simulator · Released
Aircraft specifications
Published figures for the named real-aircraft variant. Simulator equipment and performance can differ.
| Specification | Published value |
|---|---|
| Length | 74 ft 4 in (22.66 m) |
| Wingspan | 107 ft 3 in (32.69 m) |
| Height | 20 ft 9 in (6.32 m) at rudder |
| Wing area | 1,486 sq ft (138.1 m² ) |
| Empty weight | 30,000 lb (13,608 kg) to 31,200 lb (14,200 kg) in overload condition. |
| Gross weight | 45,000 lb (20,412 kg) |
| Powerplant | 4 × Wright GR-1820-G105A Cyclone air-cooled radial engines with two-stage superchargers , 1,100 hp (820 kW) each at 2400 rpm for sea level takeoff, reduced to 900 hp (670 kW) at 2300 rpm at 17,300 ft (5,300 m) |
| Propellers | three-bladed Hamilton Standard all-metal Hydromatic constant-speed propellers, 11 ft 6 in (3.51 m) diameter |
| Maximum speed | 250 mph (400 km/h, 220 kn) at 16,200 ft (4,900 m) |
| Cruise speed | 222 mph (357 km/h, 193 kn) at 19,000 ft (5,800 m) and 75% power |
| Range | 1,300 mi (2,100 km, 1,100 nmi) at 19,000 ft (5,800 m) & 75% power |
| Service ceiling | 23,800 ft (7,300 m) , reduced to 18,000 ft (5,500 m) when on three engines |
| Rate of climb | 1,200 ft/min (6.1 m/s) initial, from sea level |
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
Early pressurised-airliner cockpit equipment307 Stratoliner · Microsoft Flight Simulator · MSFS 2024
The linked 2023 guide describes the MSFS 2020 cockpit. It provides equipment background; this older manual does not establish unchanged MSFS 2024 controls.
Legacy guide; MSFS 2024 interface remains unverified
Microsoft / aircraft developers · Read the source ↗A panel-light click hides the control yokes307 Stratoliner · Microsoft Flight Simulator · MSFS 2020
The guide locates the yoke visibility click on the small pilot panel lights at the forward ends of the side consoles.
MSFS 2020 guide · PDF page 4
Microsoft / aircraft developers · Read the source ↗The Gyropilot requires manual pitch adjustments307 Stratoliner · Microsoft Flight Simulator · MSFS 2020
The illustrated Sperry controls set heading, bank and pitch. The guide explicitly says it will not capture the selected altitude; pitch adjustment remains part of levelling off.
MSFS 2020 guide · PDF page 6
Microsoft / aircraft developers · Read the source ↗Choose traditional radios or the GNS suite307 Stratoliner · Microsoft Flight Simulator · MSFS 2020
The upper-panel toggle selects traditional instruments or the GNS suite. The avionics master must be on for either arrangement.
MSFS 2020 guide · PDF page 3, visually checked
Microsoft / aircraft developers · Read the source ↗Ground power and batteries use the same selector307 Stratoliner · Microsoft Flight Simulator · MSFS 2020
GROUND connects the external power unit; FLIGHT removes it and brings the batteries online. The guide also provides an interactive checklist.
MSFS 2020 guide · PDF pages 7–8
Microsoft / aircraft developers · Read the source ↗Bring the period ground scene into view307 Stratoliner · Microsoft Flight Simulator · MSFS 2020
Separate upper-panel switches show the fuel truck and services scene, including boarding steps, attendant and baggage.
MSFS 2020 guide · PDF pages 3 and 7
Microsoft / aircraft developers · Read the source ↗Pilot account
A glass cockpit that still offered a restricted viewTWA pilot’s memoir remarks reproduced by C. V. Glines. The source supplies a brief recollection within an airline history, rather than a complete flight report.
Buck remembered the Stratoliner as an aircraft that demanded attention on the ground. Its appearance also gave a misleading impression of what the pilot could see. From outside, the generous wraparound glazing suggested a clear view; from his seat, the windscreen seemed distant, with the surrounding cockpit creating the impression of looking along a tunnel. Glines places those reservations alongside the warmer memories of other TWA pilots recorded in Robert Serling’s company history.
Bob Buck
HistoryNet / Aviation History · Read the source ↗The last delivery flight brings a restored airliner to its museumPilot’s reaction reported after the August 2003 delivery of Clipper Flying Cloud.
Nelson brought the restored Stratoliner from Pittsburgh to Dulles on its final flight. A flyover preceded the landing, and applause greeted the aircraft as it taxied to a stop. The arrival completed a journey from Seattle with stops at Oshkosh and Pittsburgh. His reaction combined affection for the aeroplane with a strong sense of travelling into the past. He praised its beauty and its place in the development of passenger flying.
Buzz Nelson
Seattle Post-Intelligencer · Read the source ↗Read the original documentation from the people who created it. Manuals open on their publisher’s website.
Manual
Boeing 307 Stratoliner ManualMicrosoft / aircraft developers Microsoft Flight Simulator aircraft manualsMicrosoft / aircraft developersAircraft background
Boeing 307 StratolinerWikipedia contributors · Research background · Wikipedia revision 1367840442 · retrieved 2026-09-12 Restoration: Soggy StratolinerAir & Space / Smithsonian · Douglas Gantenbein · September 2002Resource
MSFS 2024 FAQ and edition aircraft inventoryMicrosoftDeveloper documentation
Microsoft Flight Simulator Releases Local Legend 10: Boeing 307 StratolinerMicrosoft Flight Simulator Team · 2023-06-30 · release and package scopeBuilt-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
Boeing 307 Stratoliner
Free and Pro · Revision 2 · Partial review
MSFS 2024 · MSFS 2020
Boeing 307 Stratoliner: The selected resistance accompanies the early pressurized transport.
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