Flight Bag Leather Briefcase

8.00

$649.00

(231 reviews) Write a Review

Design of the Flight Bag

This bag was designed for pilots, like the one who flew our family to a region of Somalia infested with Al Shabaab terrorist (read the story here). These flight bags are over-engineered with no breakable parts like magnets, zippers, snaps, buttons, etc. We only use the strongest materials we can find. The leather is thick full grain leather and incredibly tough, while the lining is made of pigskin, which is even stronger. The thread is industrial, marine grade, and UV resistant, ensuring it will hold up against wear and tear. The hardware is a custom stainless steel, which is complete overkill — it's like killing a fly with a shotgun. This mid-1800s English style Gladstone Bag closure is just plain cool on this leather briefcase. It opens wide and stays open until you say otherwise (pilots love this feature to put next to their seats). The front pockets are built and then sewn on, so there are hidden pockets behind the pockets. There's a magazine pocket in the back and a floppy laptop pocket inside the leather briefcase.

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Leather in Our Pilot Bags

The leather we use is the strongest we can find (full grain boot leather, but thicker). The top layer of a leather hide has all the grain. The grain is the hide's toughest, most protective, and longest-lasting part. The grain is like the shingles on a roofthe best part. Most companies shave off the top layer (grain) of the hide to get rid of scars so they can use almost every inch of the hide in production and save money. But in doing so, it's like they're shaving the shingles off your roof. There ought to be a law.

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Lining of Our Leather Flight Bag

We use pigskin lining, which is stronger than cow leather, instead of some pretty shiny fabric with a world map on it. In addition, this pigskin lining is lighter in shade, making it much easier to see inside in a darker cockpit.

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Thread to Hold It All Together

The thread is unbelievably strong industrial marine-grade UV resistant polyester thread. It's what they use when people could die if the thread fails. Like on sails and parachutes. We use it to hold together leather briefcases.

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Hardware in Our Leather Flight Bags

Our custom hardware is a 316 Stainless Steel (please please google it). It's the metal of choice when your life depends on it. A metallurgist told me it was way overkill and that I didn't need it to be so strong. I guess it's like killing a fly with a shotgun for a leather briefcase, but we NEVER have problems with our hardware.

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No Breakable Parts in Our Leather Briefcases

Do you remember in your childhood, that transformer bag with the cool zippered rear pocket that fell apart and dropped your collection of hot wheels in the hall at school? Then you realize you want to study harder to afford nicer things that don't fall apart. So you decide to become a pilot because you love freedom and only fly what you trust. You don't want to get a part for your plane that you don't trust, no fuel pump or brakes for your Cessna from wish.

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Hinged Frame (Gladstone Closure)

The hinged frame closure comes from the mid-1800s when zippers weren't a thing yet. When you open it, it stays wide open until you say otherwise. Pilots love this feature when the bag is next to them in the cockpit. There is ample storage space for everything you might need. You might only have to carry your pilot certificate, a photo ID, and possibly even an aviation medical certificate, but there's plenty of room for all your electronics, headset & GPS, books, and fuel testers.

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External Pockets

The two pockets in the front are great for storing charging cables, flashlight, water bottle, or fuel testers. These pockets are sewn onto the leather bag, so there are hidden pockets behind these pockets to slide a passport, pens or pencils, brochures, etc. The magazine pocket in the back will fit a tablet, magazine, or book.

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Removable, Adjustable Shoulder Strap

We know not all pilots like to carry their pilot bags the same, so we made the adjustable strap so you can fit it just right. The leather strap adjusts from 40-60" and is removable too so you can carry it by hand.

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Leather Briefcase with a False Bottom

Inside the main compartment, there's a piece of leather on the bottom of the bag that serves two purposes. One - it's an extra layer of reinforcement (part of the whole over-engeneering thing). Two - it creates a false bottom so you can hide your passport or cash.

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FOR THE KIDS ABOUT A AL-SHABAAB ON VACATION

The last small plane we were on was from Nairobi to Lamu. From there, we took a 2-hour small boat ride to an island off the Northern Coast of Kenya, next to Somalia, where a Kenyan friend of ours told us it was a super cool place for holiday. We didn't know about all of the Al-Shabaab terrorist activity and kidnappings in the area, or we probably wouldn't have chosen it for our family vacation, but ignorance is bliss. The last night there was a little freaky. Okay, a lot of freaky hanging out and discussing theology with the witchcraft-practicing angel prophet of Islam, but that's for another place and time (or bag description).&&So we finally get to our destination, Mike's Camp, run and owned by a British Kenyan named Mike. A charming chap who had made a barefoot luxury Gilligan's Island resort built almost entirely from woven reeds. The walls and floors were 100% woven, and the ceilings were thatched. All of it was supported by branches and sticks.&&It was SUPER COOL. Unbelievable. And that's why billionaires fly in to stay there all the time. Of course, since we're not billionaires, we flew into Lamu and then took the little skiff to the island, but some people fly in at low tide, land on the beach, and walk up the sand dunes to the camp. It's where you completely unplug. No laptop bags are allowed. To read about the Angel prophet of Islam and our walk through the terrorists, go to the Slim Leather Briefcase page.&&Small plane bush pilots that land on the beach or take people to Lamu have a smaller flight bag briefcase next to their seats. It's just what you do when you need all of your things in a tiny cramped place.

Details

100 Year Warranty
Fits 17" Laptops
Removable Adjustable Shoulder Strap
Hidden Pockets Behind Two Front Pockets
Key Strap
False Bottom

Dimensions (W x H x D)

16" x 12" x 6"
Front Pockets: 6"W x 7"H
Strap: 1.25" W x 40" - 65" L
Shoulder Pad: 3" W x 7.75"L

MATERIALS

Full Grain Leather
Pigskin Lining
Custom Stainless Steel Hardware
Industrial Marine-Grade Polyester Thread

Early thoughts on color comparison to my Front Pocket

Just arrived and many things to love. Also a few things that give me renewed appreciation for my 10+ year old front pocket briefcase (FPB). First, color. I know lots of folks agonize over color choice. I was one! My FPB is the natural tobacco. I wanted something a little more professional-looking and it was between Chestnut and Coffee Brown. Problem with pics is the lighting makes it look so variable from shot to shot. I went with Chestnut hoping it wouldn't look as red as it did in *some* pics. I'm THRILLED with the choice. Beautiful professional look in office lighting and outdoors. Definitely not too red at all for my taste, but I know how subjective color descriptions can be. All I can say is to me, the Chestnut is beautiful and very professional/warm feeling. On functionality, it holds more than I thought. I fit my 15" MBP in with no problem along with my big Bose over-the-ear headset in its big case, plus chargers, plus a charging cord bag, and a notebook. And that's not counting the front pockets. Could squeeze more in if needed, but overall I actually don't feel it's much smaller inside than my FPB, yet the design is definitely sleeker than the FPB and it's noticeably lighter. Love the Gladstone. Works as advertised. Love being able to get to the front pockets without having to open the flap like on my FPB. Love the fact that I can pick it up without buckling the over-the-top strap and it balances nicely. On my FPB it is very awkward to carry without that strap cinched, which is annoying when just doing quick moves from one meeting room to another. What follows is not a list of anything wrong with the Flight Bag! It's just design choices. A few things I immediately now appreciate more about my FPB. (1) I miss the cigar holder in the front that I used for pens. (2) The side pockets where I keep a big sunglasses case and my air pods on my FPB. (3) The single handle vs fussing with the two separate ones is really nice when the buckle is cinched. It's just all about what you're optimizing for, and for me I wanted something with a sleeker profile and accessible front pockets. The Gladstone opening was a bonus. I'm very pleased with the purchase and the service. I recommend using the Chat feature if you can. Extremely quick and efficient and seems easier to reach than phone and definitely quicker responses than email. Can't wait to start breaking it in!

Posted by coachboz | Jan 26, 2024

5
737 approved

I fly for a major airline. We have to carry an EFB (electronic flight bag) for our FAA approved iPad's and company manuals, checklists, etc. This bag fits perfectly next to my seat in the flight deck and stays open beautifully to accommodate everything I quickly need to get to. I did bend/stretch the opening ever so slightly to have a wider entry into the bag. I have gotten a lot of compliments on this bag. Happy with my decision. Fits great on my rolling bag too.

Posted by Adam K | May 10, 2024
5
Flight Bag

A beautiful flight bag. Workmanship is top notch. I highly recommend this flight bag.

Posted by John Henderson | May 01, 2024
5
Flight Bag in Dark Brown

I have to say I love this bag!! I waffled between this bag and the large briefcase but in the end went for this because of the convenient access while working and the more manageable size allowing be to take it on the plane as a personal item, and undeniably the quality is exceptional. It will certainly outlive me. I can't believe how many compliments I am getting from day one! I have already ordered more items personally and will be doing some other items for giveaways. Thanks for such a rad product!

Posted by Robert Blakeborough | Mar 24, 2024
5
Flight Bag - Awesome

I have had several briefcases in my career but this is the best. I can say that the construction and usability is top notch. I would recommend anyone who is looking for the best quality bag I the market to just go ahead and but this one!

Posted by Mike | Mar 14, 2024
5
Early thoughts on color comparison to my Front Pocket

Just arrived and many things to love. Also a few things that give me renewed appreciation for my 10+ year old front pocket briefcase (FPB). First, color. I know lots of folks agonize over color choice. I was one! My FPB is the natural tobacco. I wanted something a little more professional-looking and it was between Chestnut and Coffee Brown. Problem with pics is the lighting makes it look so variable from shot to shot. I went with Chestnut hoping it wouldn't look as red as it did in *some* pics. I'm THRILLED with the choice. Beautiful professional look in office lighting and outdoors. Definitely not too red at all for my taste, but I know how subjective color descriptions can be. All I can say is to me, the Chestnut is beautiful and very professional/warm feeling. On functionality, it holds more than I thought. I fit my 15" MBP in with no problem along with my big Bose over-the-ear headset in its big case, plus chargers, plus a charging cord bag, and a notebook. And that's not counting the front pockets. Could squeeze more in if needed, but overall I actually don't feel it's much smaller inside than my FPB, yet the design is definitely sleeker than the FPB and it's noticeably lighter. Love the Gladstone. Works as advertised. Love being able to get to the front pockets without having to open the flap like on my FPB. Love the fact that I can pick it up without buckling the over-the-top strap and it balances nicely. On my FPB it is very awkward to carry without that strap cinched, which is annoying when just doing quick moves from one meeting room to another. What follows is not a list of anything wrong with the Flight Bag! It's just design choices. A few things I immediately now appreciate more about my FPB. (1) I miss the cigar holder in the front that I used for pens. (2) The side pockets where I keep a big sunglasses case and my air pods on my FPB. (3) The single handle vs fussing with the two separate ones is really nice when the buckle is cinched. It's just all about what you're optimizing for, and for me I wanted something with a sleeker profile and accessible front pockets. The Gladstone opening was a bonus. I'm very pleased with the purchase and the service. I recommend using the Chat feature if you can. Extremely quick and efficient and seems easier to reach than phone and definitely quicker responses than email. Can't wait to start breaking it in!

Posted by coachboz | Jan 26, 2024

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