From how to pack wet swimwear to cooking with a hotel iron, pilots, captains and first offices have revealed their go to packing techniques.
The Daily Mail reports that British Airways asked crew members to share their favourite pre-travel rituals and routines – the answers might surprise you.
Senior First Officer Cliodhna Duggan, Boeing 777 fleet says:
“Travel is made so much worse if you’re tired, hungry or have a dead phone, so you should always take earplugs, snacks and a travel adapter. I recommend see-through ziploc bags too – they’re great for everything, including making sure your liquids don’t leak and for storing wet bikinis.
“For work I can pack my case in 10 minutes. The best advice I’ve ever been given is always to put your name and contact details inside your case as well as on a label on the outside. And if you’re putting your passport in a hotel room safe, be sure to put a shoe in there with them so you won’t forget about it.”
Project Pilot Ilkka Tahvanainen, Airbus training, A380 fleet says:
“It’s not often I have a packing disaster, though I did once arrive somewhere to discover I’d brought the kids’ socks instead of mine.
“I have a neat way for folding shirts – I do up most of the buttons, then fold the ironed shirt along the middle vertical line. Then I fold the sleeves in and fold the shirt in two. The shirt comes out without needing to be ironed.”
First Officer Chloe Harrison, Airbus A320 fleet, Gatwick says:
“My longest work trips are three days so I never carry much more than gym kit and a pair of jeans. My advice for frequent travellers is to have your suitcase ready to go at all times. When I return from a trip, I just wash whatever’s in my wash bag and put it back in. Then all I have to add is a clean shirt and my toothbrush just before I leave.
“I’m a huge fan of the rolling method for packing – you can jam in so much more stuff. This is particularly true in the winter, when you have to pack ‘warm’. Stuffing tights into shoes and rolling up toiletries into jeans helps
“The most surprising thing I travel with is tin foil. Why? So I can use the iron in my hotel room to turn a cheese sandwich into a toastie.”
Captain Rob Johnson, Airbus A320 fleet says:
“Packing a case has been part of my life for 16 years, so these days I can do it in minutes. The best bits of
packing advice I’ve ever received are to ask myself ‘Do you really need it?’ and ‘Can you even carry all this?’.
“The one thing I wouldn’t travel without is my running kit. After a long day sitting on a plane it’s great to get out for a jog and some fresh air.
“For an easy-to-pack souvenir, I like olive oil. Wrap the bottle in a plastic bag and then wrap it again in some of your dirty clothes before packing it securely in the middle of your case. As long as it’s in there snugly, it won’t break.”
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