What Airline Pilots Pack

Anyone that knows me will say I am a bit OCD when it comes to organization.  With this comes the ability to pack smartly and be able to live on the road for a week or more at a time.  When a pilot is on reserve, they could easily be gone for five plus days at a time.  For those of us who hold lines, or are on reserve flying international, we could be gone six or more days at a time.  Packing is key to survive and be comfortable.

For starters, most airlines allow crew members to have a total of three bags.  This includes a roller bag (carry-on style suitcase, 22 or 24 inch), a second bag such as a flight kit, and a third bag such as a lunchbox.  I will cover all three.

Lets start with the easy stuff... FOOD!

I carried the Stealth Premier Cooler from Luggage works. This has a good size top section for dry items and a large section for cold items, as well as a front pocket for utensils and side pockets for sauce packets. I started out meal prepping but found it was hard to keep things cold on long work days or hotels without refrigeration.  I made the switch to healthy options such as microwave bowl sticky rice, tuna and chicken packets, microwave India food packets (different flavors available), etc.  This allowed me to take seven plus days of food with me without the need to keep it cold.  To make it easy to combine items after microwaving, I got a collapsible, microwave safe, travel bowl from Amazon. and since I am an airline pilot, I also carried travel steel flatware from Amazon. To ensure I could have some different flavors, I also ordered tons of different sauce packets from Amazon as well. Currently, I do not bring a lunch box.  Many international destinations do not allow use to bring food through customs.  Therefore I have a small pouch in my flight bag that I put a variety of tea's, drink flavors, and instant coffee packets in.

While flying, it is important to never be hungry.  Hunger can lead to decreased awareness, tiredness, etc.  I always had an array of different snack options in my bag such as cliff bars, Kodak bars, assorted nuts.

My current, and favorite suitcase is the Briggs & Riley Essential 2-Wheel Carry On Expandable.  This suitcase is a slimmer profile than the Luggage Works crew bags (see below) but can carry more.  And when your trip requires packing more layers to keep warm or you do a little too much shopping, its unique expand and compression system can give you up to 34% MORE space than any bag of its size.  This company is also the only company with a true NO COST, LIFETIME warranty.  If it breaks, they will fix it no questions asked for free or REPLACE it at no cost. (Make sure to click the “expand and compression system” link to see how awesome this feature is!  A “j-hook” to attached a second bag is available.

I pair this suitcase with the Tumi Expandable Organizer Laptop Brief (Alpha) as my flight bag..

For a flight bag, every pilot has their own preference.  Personally, I have used bags such as Luggage Works, Contrails, and the 22SevenDesign backpack. The backpack is my favorite when I was a regional pilot as I can use it for more than when flying if needed.  Its slim design fits perfect in the side compartment on the flight deck, the top opening allows me to flip the lid to gain access to things like my headset, water bottle (hydroflask), traffic vest, and snacks.  The very top has a strong magnetic pocket where I kept my sunglasses, spare pens, and my flashlight. In one of the side pockets, I kept a battery pack since my aircraft did not have power outlets on the flight deck.  This backpack was large enough to carry my work iPad and my personal, occasionally my MacBook Air as well.  With all this, I still had room without having a huge bag. The bag is customizable as well, so you can pick the front and side pockets that you want!

Now, for the big and important part- the suitcase!  There are a few brands that most flight crew use.  The most common is LuggageWorks, followed by TravelPro and Briggs & Riley.  Luggage Works is the most durable and longest lasting, whereas TravelPro looks more like a "normal" suitcase, B&R is the very expensive line.  All come with great warranties.  Personally, I used the Stealth Premier 22" Rolling Bag from Luggage Works. I started with the base model from Luggage Works (Executive 22" Rolling Bag) but it did not last long.  The side pockets rip open at the zippers pretty easy when being handled by ground crew.  With Stealth Premier has a redesigned side pocket that prevents this from happening.  The Stealth also has a more sturdy front which prevents bulging and stretching which is common in the executive series. LuggageWorks uses a solid metal from that prevents damage, no matter how many curbs I drag it across.  It also makes for a great seat at the gate when waiting on boarding. As mentioned above, I know use the B&R.

A quick list of some items that are packed that stay in my bag:

• Charger: 2 65w USB-C, 2 25w USB. Easy to charge MacBook, iPads, iPhone from one device.
  
• Patagonia Nano Puff Jacket, you never know if it will be hot or cold on your trip.  I was once assigned a trip working Canada in the winter and ended up in Miami and Bahamas instead.  For this, I always carry a jacket in case the opposite occurs.  This jacket works well, even in NYC in the winter.
  
• UA Ultra Light Weight Ran Jacket Since rain is never known at certain places, I carry an ultra lightweight ran jacket.  The one I carry is similar to the link.  It is extremely small and packable, fitting into a small pocket on my bag.  I can put this over any uniform item as well.
• Packing Cubes The key to getting everything I need in the bag is packing smartly.  I use cubes to keep everything compressed and neat.  I use one that fits the upper 1/2 of my bag and only takes up 1/2 the depth for all my normal clothes.  I use a smaller one to fit all of my socks, underwear, and undershirts as this is the most frequently used.  This way I keep the frequent items separate for those short layovers where I only have time to sleep and change.
  
• Toiletry Bag This bag takes up 1/3 of the lower potion of my bag with space on top.  It holds everything I need.  Flight Crew can carry full-size items such as toothpaste, shampoo, etc but I do not.  Some international destinations do not allow crew to carry full-size and I'd rather not have to throw things away if I get rerouted.  To pack smartly, I use refillable items such as these bags for shaving cream, head scrub, etc. I also carry one charcoal bar soap instead of body wash using the FlakPak Soap Bag which is compact and drys the soap without getting all over my bag.
• Flip-Flops, I prefer the Rainbow single layer.  This makes it easy to walk downstairs to get food, go to the beach, stroll around town.
• NoBull Gym Shoes, being healthy is a must.  Finding a gym is easy at the airlines if your airline has Active & Fit.  I can also use these shoes if flip-flops aren't going to work (like when it is raining).
  
• Two Tide laundry pods (in a ziplock bag).  In the rare case I get stuck and need to use the hotel laundry, its much cheaper to have your own pods.
• Travel lint roller
• Travel pack of bandaids
• Travel Lotion (one in flight bag, one in toiletry bag). I just refill it from my one at home.
• Travel Toothpaste, near full size. Instead of using tiny and typical travel size toothpaste, I found one that is almost full-size but still TSA compliant.
  
• For those going international or Canada, an International power adaptor is a must. I recommend the one both AA and Delta give to their pilots.
• Fanny Pack.  Now, I am not a dad and wear this around my waist, but yet cross body.  But when I have time to explore the city I am in, I like to be able to carry my wallet, passport, room key, charging cord, etc without having to pack my pant pockets. Works great going to the gym as well.
• Universal belt.  I use a very thin, canvas belt that rolls up tiny.
• Tide Pen.  I cannot tell you how many Tide Pens I go through a year with these white shirts and turbulence.

Deciding what clothes to pack requires a bit of background.  Depending where I am based, I load the hottest and coldest destinations for my plane into the weather app on my iPhone.  Before I pack, I look at both, as well as what I am scheduled to do.  If the schedule goes crazy, they can send me anywhere and I want to be prepared.  During the summer months, I tend to pack two pairs of shorts, 3-4 t-shirts, a gym outfit, and one pair of LuLuLemon pants with a nice shirt in case the crew wants to go out.  During the winter, I pack a pair of jeans, LuLuLemon pants, and a pair of shorts along with the normal shirts and gym outfit.  I always have a pair of shorts and I always have a pair of pants, just in case the weather isn't what I expected.  The key is taking shorts/pants that work with all your shirts, and shirts that work with all of your shorts/pants so you can make a more outfits if needed.

Misc. Items:

• I recommend the American Express Platinum Card for those traveling often.  Though the $695 dollar annual fee sounds like a lot, it gets you way more.  $250/year Uber Credit (loaded directly to your account), automatic Gold status at Hilton and Marriott, $200/year airline credit of your choosing, Free Global Entry/TSA Pre-Check, Delta SkyClub, PriorityPass Airport Lounge, and hundreds of discounts and cash back on everyday purchases.  I normally save anywhere from $3-4,000 dollars a year.  It also has zero foreign transaction fees.
• Now, everywhere doesn't take Amex.  Therefore I also carry a Visa Flagship Black credit card from my bank, with 3% cash back on everyday purchases and more cash back on specific items like gas.  This also has a zero percent foreign transaction fee.
• Spare REAL ID drivers license.  I keep this in my flight bag and never take it out.  In case I lose my wallet, I always have a spare ID that is accepted at TSA.
• On my crew badge, I used a special hole punch to put an ID hole in my Passport ID card (not the passport itself, but the optional card).  This lets me use KCM quickly by having my airline ID and valid/accepted ID together instead of having to go into my bag- holding up the line.
• Spare Pin Backers (wings, tie pins, uniform hat brass)
  
• Sewing Kit I have torn a shirt, lost a button, or ripped my pants more than once. Having the ability to make a quick fix until I get home is a life saver.
• Vitamins! With out job, we often have to skip meals or do not get a complete meal.  Find a daily vitamin to keep you healthy.  My partner has a degree in such and recommends Rainbow Light (mens, but they have women's too) One Multivitamin.  Highly recommend asking your doctor what would be best for you.
• My best friend, also an airline pilot, recommends bringing a FireStick or Roku.  I use my personal iPad since I need it to run my online classes, but she likes to have it on the big TV.
• She also recommends Sun Screen in your flight bag.  We have huge windows with lots of sun- you can and will get a sun burn on long flights.
• Last but not least, carry $1 bills!  We all tip the van drivers from the airport to hotel and hotel to airport.  Each crew member gives $1 each trip.  I normally carry about $20 in ones, but make sure you always have funds!

If you have more ideas, let me know!  I love hearing ways people save space- especially if an item can be used for multiple purposes instead of taking multiple things!