Our hope is that you’ll be proud of your bag because of the compliments you get and how long it lasts. But our deeper hope is that you join our community of those nurturing the vulnerable and loving the unloved. We do more than just quality leather bags; we do quality in all areas of our business.
Our purpose is not to change the world by loving orphans, single moms and ex-prisoners one at a time. It’s to work with a Love 41 community/family of loving and nurturing people to do it. If you want to but you’re not sure how, then join us on Facebook or sign up for our newsletter to learn more. We’ll help you get plugged in.
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Our leather is the strongest we can find (full-grain boot leather, but thicker). The top layer of a leather hide has all of the grain in it, and the grain is the toughest, most protective and longest lasting part of the hide. The grain is like the shingles on a roof. 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 therefore save money. But in doing so, it's like they're shaving the shingles off of your roof. Kind of insane.
The thread is unbelievably strong industrial marine grade UV resistant polyester thread. It's what they use on sails and parachutes (things your life depends on). We use it to hold together leather briefcases.
This mid-1800's 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 seat. For closure, I chose a single leather strap with holes punched all the way out to the very tip, just in case your bag is way overstuffed or you want to stick your umbrella or blueprints under the strap horizontally or leave the laptop bag open to stick your stuff out vertically. The front pockets are built and then sewn on, so there are hidden pockets behind the pockets.
We use tough, but soft pigskin lining, which is stronger than the cow leather, instead of some pretty shiny fabric with a world map on it. There's also a false bottom inside that serves two purposes: First, it adds an extra layer of reinforcement. Secondly, you can hide cash, passports, etc. under there, but please don't hide drugs. Drugs are bad.
Our custom hardware is the amazing 316 Stainless Steel (please please google it). A metallergist told me that it was way overkill and that I really 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.
The removable, adjustable shoulder strap is a handy feature. You can take it off your briefcase to tie the Christmas tree to the rack of your car. The strap on this briefcase is as tough and durable as our quality full grain leather belts.
This is more than a leather laptop bag or briefcase for pilots — it’s a legacy piece designed to be fought over long after you’re gone. We believe your bag should outlast your career, your travel miles, and your wildest adventures. Buy it once. Break it in. Pass it down.
If something does go wrong, we’ll fix it under our 100-year warranty — because your leather bag shouldn’t give out before you do.
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 was a really 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 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 called 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. Since we're not billionaires, we flew into Lamu and then took the little skiff to the island, but there are people who 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 allowed. To read about the Angel prophet of Islam and our walk through the terrorists, go to the Slim Leather Briefcase page.
Anyways, each of those small plane bush pilots that land on the beach or take people to Lamu, have a smaller flight bag briefcase next to their seat. It's just what you do when you need all of your things in one small cramped place.
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After 3 years of indecision and list of bad bags, I had finally pulled the trigger on Saddleback Flight Bag. It has been almost 3 months now and I am in love with the bag. Got it in chestnut colour. Thankfully, we can travel within Australia and this bag has been living under the aeroplane seats. Very robust and getting a nice patina. I am definitely a major fan on Saddleback. Saddleback's customer support has been second to none. Thank you.
I am using this flight bag as a briefcase and love it. The feature I love most is the Gladstone opening. I usually have it open beside my chair and can easily look down and pull out whatever book, notebook or pen/pencil that I need for the moment. I have tried other briefcases in the past but the "fold over" flap on top of the bag seemed to always be in the way. Now when using this bag and changing from one project to the other I can easily look down and see where everything is and easily take out the new project and put the old one back in it's place. Fantastic idea for moving in and out of the briefcase. PLUS the quality of the leather and craftsmanship is wonderful. Love everything about this bag and am totally satisfied with this purchase! Thanks Dave to you and your company. Keep up the great work.
I already thought I was gonna like this bag - in fact, I planned on buying it for a year or more without ever getting it to the top of my priority list. In retrospect, that was a mistake. I didn’t realize it would actually improve my life! And yes, I mean that literally: having a briefcase that stands upright and open, no matter what, means that I can throw things in, pull them out, and always know where they are. No more guessing and hoping and disappointing myself; no more straight-up losing important stuff because I set it who-knows-where. And of course it’s so handsome that no one ever complains when I leave it out around the house. The flight bag is really that “mobile office” ideal that every briefcase aspires to. Goodness, what a useful hunk of leather.
I bought the flight bag about two months ago and I’ll be honest, I haven’t treated it gently. It was a replacement for my college bookbag because nylon backpacks are not a good look for men of a certain age. That being said, this flight bag is awesome. It still hasn’t been broken in completely despite my best efforts. It holds a surprising amount of “stuff” and looks great. I am very pleased with the construction, heft, and design. It can quickly acquire scuffs and patina but those go away easily with some leather conditioner if you want to dress it up. I use this bag every day and look forward to many years of continuous use.
I've been using the Flight Bag Leather Briefcase daily for nearly two months now. I love it. Construction and material quality are first-class. The size is superbly functional for transporting laptops, binders, and accessories. As previously mentioned, it is appropriately hefty (in weight) for the durability and quality of materials. When loaded up fully, it is heavy. The adjustable shoulder strap is my 'go-to' method of carry and slings perfectly for easy carriage. The external slide pocket on the opposite side of the two smaller pockets is made to fit for my iPad Pro. Nice for an accessible item you need frequently when you desire to keep the rest of the straps buckled up. The two smaller buckled pockets are smartly sized and nicely fit a passport wallet, if you choose not to place it under the false bottom inside. Only add on item I will order soonest is the leather strap accessory that provides a convenient method to secure your briefcase to the telescoping handle of luggage. I saw it on the same bag that an acquaintance of mine recently purchased, and I was immediately envious. Plan to order that item after finishing this review. Zero regrets about this purchase. I love the style, quality, functionality and durability. This will be by my side for many years of air travel and daily work. Thank you!
