Pilots and flight bags go together like a horse and carriage. The contents of my own bag evolved over the years. Some items joined, some others left. Some were replaced by better models, I changed GPS and fuel tester a couple of times. Today my bag contains the following items:

The bag itself is a Jeppesen Captain Bag in blue.- It’s roomy enough to take 4 Jeppesen binders and a kneeboard. It has two detachable bags for headsets and one for a handheld radio. When I don’t need so much binders I put the detachable pockets in the main bag to make it more compact. It is delivered with removeable separators for the main pockets, but I never used them. I also don’t use the carrying strap which is too short for me… probably because I’m a taller than usual pilot.

My headset is a Bose X, which Santa did give me five years ago and which is definitely the best one I ever flew with. I had to replace the cushions who got damage by too much sweat when flying on hot summer days.

I previously flew with a David Clark H10-13S Stereo Headset which has now been “downgraded” to the role of first passenger headset. It is not as expensive as the Bose and has no active noise reduction system, but it’s more than fine. My wife and other passengers used it and never complained about its comfort or weight. Well, they did not had the chance to test my headset.

My very first headset was a Flightcom 4DLX Headset. It was part of the “starter kit” that the club where I learned to fly used to sell to newbies. It’s a low-end, low-cost but resistant one. I never complained about its weight, or the pressure it makes on the head during my first 55 hours of flying… but then I tried something else. I would no longer fly for hours with it, but for occasional use as a second passenger headset.

The two next items are considered “gadgets” by some pilots, but I see them as important backup devices.  A handheld Garmin GPSMAP 96C for the case where on-board navigation capabilities are affected, let’s say by an electrical failure. Bad in VMC, critical in IMC. The previous one I owned was a Garmin GPSMAP 296 (the previous version of the 496). When I bought the 496 I intended to use it as a main device. Then I had the chance to fly more and more planes equipped with a GNS 430, and found the 296 a bit too large for a backup device so I changed for the 96C.

As I learned to fly on a towered airport (Geneva – LSGG), a radio failure on the way home would mean a diversion, so a handheld radio was a must. I recommend the Icom IC-A24 which also includes a VOR receiver. It’s also a precious tool for IFR, and I use it to copy the ATIS and get my start-up clearance. It’s both a way to check that the radio works and avoid draining the aircraft’s battery. I did not had to cope with an electircal failure in IMC up to now, but I’m convinced that having an handheld radio makes this situation much less critical.

Charts handling in flight is one of my weak points. I often struggle to keep my charts and maps well organized. When flying Piper or Cessnas (or simulators…) I find really helpful to use a yoke-mounted clip. Not only it eliminates the need of having a kneeboard on my laps all the time and also places the approach / departure chart right in front of me. I used many different kneeboards, of different sizes, depending of the type of aircraft flown. Stick-equipped aircraft makes the use of a kneeboard almost impossible, except for very small ones. Jeppesen has a good model which comes with a fabric holder than can also contain spare charts, ruler, pens, checklists and so on. I like it because it is alsp possible to remove it from the holder and use only the metal plate with the chart clip and strap it on my leg, reducing the required room.

Another thing I did not really appreciate for years are fuel testers. Your probably know the basic plastic model with the removable pin. Yes, this pin that always broke, or that can’t get removed when so required ? I almost forgot about it since a good friend of mine gave me a GATS Fuel Jar Strainer. It’s large, its pin is metallic, and it filters dust and contaminants out of fuel, making possible to put it back in the tanks.

NVFR and IFR rules mandates the presence of a flashlight on board. I opted for an LED based model because classical light bulbs do fail so easily. The LED technology also makes possible to get white and red light (for NVFR) without having to use filters.

Last but not least, I have sick bags… well… just in case.

A note about this page: most of the links on this page take you to mypilostore.com, an online store for pilots. If you order a product via one of these links I receive a small commission. This helps me to continue developping this blog, finance contests, and contribute to my flying budget.