Had no trouble installing my FS24,  737-800 $30 update & went for an autoland on the shake down flight.

Very smooth the whole way until I disengaged the Autopilot a millisecond after touch down & everything froze.

Anyone else had that?

T45

29 minutes ago, ryanbatc said:

That being said, maybe he was having a bad day. 

You don't get to have a bad day as the CEO of a company when you are interacting with customers.

That privilege is reserved for employees only.

Edited December 19, 2025Dec 19 by Farlis

40 minutes ago, JYW said:

Well, I'm in a pretty strong position here, because 90% of my flying is with delicious GA models from A2A, BlackSquare, COWS and FSW.

I don't own the iFly 737 but have certainly bought every version of the PMDG 737.  So I have 'form' for buying their 73s when released.  I'm honestly not bothered by the $30 price tag. If it's a decent update I'd say that's about what I'd expect.

But because I only fly airliners occassionally these days, I'm not exactly 'chomping at the bit' to buy this.

As of last evening I would have said that the chances I would buy it to fly at some point would have been over 90%. However the case of that PMDG user who was allegedly banned and called an a$$wipe by Robert Randazzo has really stuck in my throat. 😠   The only thing I detest more than arrogance, is arrogance shown by a business towards its customers. 

The usual smarmy people on here posted things like "You're all children, every one of you will buy it".   Well, no. Some of us are highly disciplined in applying our principals.    I was hugely into Airbus and the Fenix, when the FSL was released for MSFS.  Part of me desperately wanted to pick up their new A320.    But I didn't and I never will because I do not buy FSL products, for reasons I don't need to elaborate on I'm sure.

Randazzo also seems to take the view that "you'll all buy it any way 😇" but actually you have a choice.  If you're strong and integral enough to use it.

Having read the sheer arrogance of Randazzo calling a customer an 'a$$wipe' for a post that wasn't abusive, I have no intention of buying or supporting PMDG again because - I can't speak for the rest of their team (they might be good guys) - but their leader is just obnoxious and toxic IMHO.

What word would you use to describe a business owner who calls his customers abusive, petulent names, knowing that his response will likely be shared across the internet?    I'm going to go with "a$$wipe".

I respect that perspective.

But the days of "photographic proof" are looooong behind us.

I'm not saying RR didn't write that, but don't rush to judgment until there's a substantial body of proof. 

Why?

Because anyone with access to ChatGPT or other AI tools could do that in about 5 mins. In fact, they could download RR's entire video from yesterday, upload it to an AI, along with a script saying literally anything, and about 45 mins later have video "proof".

 

All the grievances and hate aside, which I am not going to get involved in,.....

 

The aircraft is solid.  Install went without a hitch, with alot of liveries.  The performance is really smooth, and first flight went without any hiccups.  Nice to have somewhat of a working WX radar.  Soundset also sounds a whole lot better than previous.  Just have to play around more with windows spatial sound.   

$30 upgrade, not thrilling, but considering I got the $99 discount deal when we moved from P3D, really cant complain. They did alot of work and it shows.  The team deserves commendation too.

Cheers

10 hours ago, UrgentSiesta said:

The thing that makes me LMFAO is all the dudes saying they’re gonna run out and buy the iFly for $70 instead of taking the $30 deal from PMDG. Like, you didn’t get a free upgrade so NOW you’re going to spend more than TWICE as much on another addon…? 😂

it’s totally fine to vehemently disagree with a paid upgrade, but those guys are just cutting their nose to spite their face. 

Almost as bad as the guys who’re bemoaning the “monopoly” and lack of competition. THEY take the cake 🤣

Give less money to a dev that doesn't respect their customers and goes out of their way to be jerks or give more money to a dev that hasn't spoken down on their customer base (yet, potentially) and is delivering something that should be free (or actually cheap) for free? Easy choice for me.

After all of this I've learned from PMDG that:

- Pirates don't get punished but their users get held at ransom to unlock their planes they already bought

- They can suspend access to the software you purchased for "defamatory behavior"

- Should take the "be quiet" route instead of saying something then being ashamed of it brought up later

I mean take this as an example: https://forum.pmdg.com/forum/main-forum/general-discussion-news-and-announcements/380549-what-stone-did-these-folks-hide-under?p=380783#post380783

Maybe they're problematic comments because people took a look at how much work you did to make it work in the new sim and it's on the level of a free update when other devs are also improving their planes when moving to the new sim but are actually free? It's actually disappointing because for $10, I would've went for it but after all of this they don't deserve my money. It should've been a slam dunk win for them but they fumbled it somehow.

Anyways, Rob already has his Falcon so he definitely doesn't need my money. I'll give it to iFly for their Max and haven't regretted giving it to Fenix or Just Flight after the massive level of support and improvements they've given...for free.

 

46 minutes ago, trainplane3 said:

Anyways, Rob already has his Falcon so he definitely doesn't need my money. I'll give it to iFly for their Max and haven't regretted giving it to Fenix or Just Flight after the massive level of support and improvements they've given...for free.

Owning a biz jet is an extremely expensive proposition - especially an older one like a Falcon 50. The operating expenses for fuel and ongoing scheduled and unscheduled maintenance can be very high. If it is being used for Part 135 charter, those expenses can be recouped through the fees that charter clients pay, but that doesn’t always work out if something expensive breaks and has to be repaired. We had to replace the cursor control device (basically a track ball) in one of our Falcon 900EX EASy aircraft this week. In 2021, Honeywell charged $33,000 for that unit. The current price is $140,000! That is the case for almost all avionics and engine components - price increases of 100 to 300 percent are typical over the past two or three years

Bjet, thus the 30.00 or 75.00 cup of coffee setting on the Tarmac.

1 hour ago, UrgentSiesta said:

I respect that perspective.

But the days of "photographic proof" are looooong behind us.

I'm not saying RR didn't write that, but don't rush to judgment until there's a substantial body of proof. 

Why?

Because anyone with access to ChatGPT or other AI tools could do that in about 5 mins. In fact, they could download RR's entire video from yesterday, upload it to an AI, along with a script saying literally anything, and about 45 mins later have video "proof".

 

It's a fair point to suggest that it could have been faked.  Definitely possible.

If RR came out and refuted the comment and threatened the user with legal action, I think I'd be persuaded that it wasn't genuine.

If there's a wall of silence, I think that speaks volumes too.

1 hour ago, trainplane3 said:

Give less money to a dev that doesn't respect their customers and goes out of their way to be jerks or give more money to a dev that hasn't spoken down on their customer base (yet, potentially) and is delivering something that should be free (or actually cheap) for free? Easy choice for me.

After all of this I've learned from PMDG that:

- Pirates don't get punished but their users get held at ransom to unlock their planes they already bought

- They can suspend access to the software you purchased for "defamatory behavior"

- Should take the "be quiet" route instead of saying something then being ashamed of it brought up later

I mean take this as an example: https://forum.pmdg.com/forum/main-forum/general-discussion-news-and-announcements/380549-what-stone-did-these-folks-hide-under?p=380783#post380783

Maybe they're problematic comments because people took a look at how much work you did to make it work in the new sim and it's on the level of a free update when other devs are also improving their planes when moving to the new sim but are actually free? It's actually disappointing because for $10, I would've went for it but after all of this they don't deserve my money. It should've been a slam dunk win for them but they fumbled it somehow.

Anyways, Rob already has his Falcon so he definitely doesn't need my money. I'll give it to iFly for their Max and haven't regretted giving it to Fenix or Just Flight after the massive level of support and improvements they've given...for free.

 

Seems reasonable on the surface. Here’s a few counterpoints:

I don’t need my Toy Airplane developer to be my friend. 

My personal interactions with PMDG and Kok (when he was at Aerosoft) have been uniformly professional, even if I didn’t always get the response I was hoping for. 

I don’t even care if they’re “nice guys”. All I care about is that they deliver products that are High Fidelity at a competitive price. And that they inarguably do.

“…should be free…” is entirely subjective. we all know PMDG’s pricing history and matrix by now, so we shouldn’t feel entitled to somebody else’s labor for free. 

I 100% agree that other Hi Fi devs have been EXTREMELY generous with their updates and upgrades.

e.g., MAD PROPS to the Just Flight team! And please don’t tell @Martyn JF, but I would’ve been happy to throw some cash at them for the astoundingly improved Hawk v2, 146 v2, and Turbo Arrow v2. 

who’s getting held at ransom? I still have access to install my 747-8i even tho it’s been deprecated and is unsupported. 
 

1 hour ago, trainplane3 said:

They can suspend access to the software you purchased for "defamatory behavior"

You mean just like you can be forcibly removed and permanently banned from a retail establishment for boorish behavior? Even though you haven’t finished your dinner..?

Yeah. Just like THAT very well established principle of law. 

In sum, it’s your money and you should spend it with vendors who satisfy your desires. 

the Market will speak, and PMDG will adjust if needed  

It just seems to me that the Market has been speaking for the last 25 years, and that your positions seem to be decidedly in the minority. 🤙

30 minutes ago, JYW said:

If RR came out and refuted the comment and threatened the user with legal action, I think I'd be persuaded that it wasn't genuine.

If there's a wall of silence, I think that speaks volumes too.

And if RR came out and commented, people would have said he was a lier and is even more arrogant... There are no ends.

Sometimes silence is the best answer.

32 minutes ago, JYW said:

It's a fair point to suggest that it could have been faked.  Definitely possible.

If RR came out and refuted the comment and threatened the user with legal action, I think I'd be persuaded that it wasn't genuine.

If there's a wall of silence, I think that speaks volumes too.

Yeah, and maybe if he had nothing better to do, he would. 

but there comes a point where it’s just not worth it, especially since everyone with a keyboard can get in your face. 

Or, as many others have said, sometimes it’s wiser not to feed the trolls. 

in any case, it could be true, and that’d definitely knock RR down a few pegs in my book. 

we’ll see what, if anything, becomes of this accusation. 

Edited December 19, 2025Dec 19 by UrgentSiesta

1 hour ago, sdirand said:

Sometimes silence is the best answer.

I definitely don't think silence is the best option, if someone was to have faked a response from Randazzo.  Would you be silent if someone publically displayed an image where you appeared to be abusive, when it wasn't true?

What is more likely, I think, is that the response was genuine, and in that case, yes, I'm sure his response will be silence....

I mean, it's not like the man would ever contemplate a reflection and apology.  Having seen him in action for over 20 years, I am positive that that is not an option RR would ever take.   Showing humility?  Losing face?  Admitting he was wrong or acted poorly?    Narcissistic people will never take that route.

There's this as well.  Absolutely cannot vouch for the authenticity of it, and it would definitely be easy to fake, but also... Pretty on brand for both Rob and Makris these days. 

In the comment threads, there's also a screenshot of Rob giving someone "points" for being a "misinformation campaigner".  That I think I CAN vouch for the authenticity of, since I got the same once upon a time. 😂. My crime was pointing out that people use easily recognizable fake names all the time on their forum.  Supposedly, this was misinformation.... Despite the fact that my examples were "Vlad Tepes" and "Art Vandalay".  (Art even used a picture of George Costanza as his avatar).  

Misinformation Campaigner.  😂

 

Can't help but get a mild inclination that PMDG really can't stand their customers!

There was a time when PMDG released a plane that the forums were filled with comments on the plane, its strengths and weaknesses and stories about how people were enjoying it and helping each other lean it. Virtually this entire 36 pages is about PMDG itself and its staff and policies and treatment of customers. Something has woefully changed.