Just got my ticket yesterday, and am reorganizing my flight bag to convert from "student" mode to "private pilot" mode. I'm sure I'll figure out what's going to be useful for me as I go on, but I was wondering what other pilots keep in their bags. What tools/gadgets they find useful, usually. Here's my gear at present:
- iPad
- 2 noise canceling headsets (For flying with a friend.)
- spare batteries for the headsets and iPad.
- Current AF/D and sectionals in case the iPad fails.
- Passenger comfort case containing tissues, dramamine, ginger anti-nausea candies, and chewing gum
- Barf bags.
- Male/female emergency urinals
- Red/white flashlight
- pens/pencils
- Logbook
- Medical
- License
I think that's it. What do you bring?
VFR day local... iPad, iPad charging cable (12V aircraft with a cigar plug... not all have that), headset, kneeboard. Kneeboard has my favorite mechanical pencil and a couple of cheap pens in it at all times.
If I feel like more, the Brightline has...
- Multiple flashlights. Two or three depending on if I've stolen one out of the bag recently.
- A couple of extra AA batteries for flashlights that usually get used by someone for something else, since with more than one flashlight, one is never dead.
- Cheap Home Depot Red/White headlamp. (Way better than flashlights.)
- Extra pair of prescription sunglasses (and now that I haven't broken a pair in a while, probably non-sunglasses too).
- Foggles (you never know when someone might be willing to play safety pilot or if you need to block out the distracting cloud tops IFR). If planning serious hood work, a real hood gets clipped to the bag handle on the way out the door, but the foggles stay in there.
- Microfiber cloth to clean glasses. Not that I remember... and wonder why I have my own self-induced "traffic"... LOL.
- Extra headset (just happens to be in there...)
- Fuel tester (there's one in the plane, but since I have one and the bag has a pocket for it...)
- Checkbook. (Seriously. Can't count how many times I've realized I left the checkbook at home and needed to write one in aviation... it's about the only place I need paper anymore.
- Old or new VFR charts if I have them for the area. (Old habit dies hard...)
- Chart plotter for the above.
- Cheap thin light E6B. Yeah, really.
- Audio patch cable for iPad/recording device.
- Tascam digital audio recorder.
- Barf bag(s). In an outside accessible (always) pocket.
- Leatherman tool. Old style, nothing fancy. When you need one they're great.
- Kitchen timer thingy for approaches.
Medical/License stay on me in my wallet. Logbook is at home unless it needs to be at the airport, and even then it's probably not going flying. Log it on iPad/iPhone and transfer later.