Crewmembers are very hard on their luggage and won't tolerate junky luggage that won't perform well over a long period of time. The best value in luggage is good quality, well-built, highly functional luggage that is backed up with a strong waranty. You'll achieve best value if something serves you well for a long period of time. That way your cost per use will be low.

This eliminates most of cheaper discount store luggage. Surprisingly, it also eliminates many of fancy, high priced "designer" bags also.

I've carefully inspected many designer bags offered in boutique designer logo shops. Often these bags have quality and features of cheap ones in discount stores. Their only value is "perceived value" of designer logo.

I've been shocked to find prices of these bags well over $1000 while they are inferior in quality, duraility, and features of many suitcases costing around $200-$300.

There are only a few brands that I specifically recommend. More on that in a moment.

The following "checklist" for choosing your luggage should help you make a good purchase decision.

Pilot Paul's Luggage Buying Checklist:

Wheels. These are essential. Think about how much walking with your bags is involved in any trip. It is best to have at least one bag in your ensemble with wheels. The ideal situation is to arrange things so with one wheeled bag acting as a cart, you can be completely mobile with your entire luggage. This will save you lots of time waiting for porters and bellmen, plus tip money.

I highly recommend larger, rubberized wheels with ball bearings- similar to ones on inline skates. These make a noticeable difference when pulling a loaded bag. They give best performance and longevity.

Recessed wheels are less likely to be damaged. Often, while doing aircraft exterior inspections, I'll find suitcase wheels that have been broken off in loading/unloading process.

Handle. Make sure that it is long enough. If it's too short, you'll be leaning sideways while walking.

Make sure that handle locks down so it won't be damaged if you check your bag.

One thing that leads to handle failures on many bags is lifting a loaded bag by pull handle. Your bag will last longer if you lift it by smaller grip handles.

For larger bags, two grip handles make it much easier to hoist, lift, and carry your bag. Think of getting bag out of a trunk of up into an overhead bin.

Outer Shell. There are three different types: soft-sided, hard-sided, and in-between, semi-soft sided. Consider your needs.

Soft-sided are most lightweight and expandable. They make best carry-ons, but your bag's contents are most vulnerable to damage. Think about what you'll pack in one, especially if you plan to check your bag.

There's engine and air noise on planes, blaring sounds of city streets, noisy air conditioners, unwanted noise in office and endless lawn equipment noise at home.

These constant sounds can cause fatigue and sap your energy.

If you've ever enjoyed effects of a good noise cancelling headphone, you know that it's possible to "slip on some quiet" and have a reprieve form all that unwanted noise.

Once you use a quality noise cancelling headphone, you'll wonder how you've ever gotten by without any. The first time I ever tied noise canceling headphones, I was astonished by how well they worked.

Hi, I'm Pilot Paul, Captain at a major airline. I've been using noise cancelling headphones for over a decade.

At my airline, we bring along an additional pilot on long flights. This allows us to take turns and have a rest break. That way we always have fresh, alert pilots at controls. We have use of a first class seat for this extremely important rest.

My airline provides a noise cancelling headphone for each first class passenger to use. They love them, and don't want to give them back at end of flight.

One of main reasons that I'm able to rest and sleep during my important rest breaks is noise cancelling headphones.

If you are interested in my complete article which gives you many tips on sleeping well on planes, please visit: www.pilot-pauls-travel-accessories.com/travel-comfort.html What's Special About Noise Cancelling Headphones?

Unlike regular headphones, noise cancelling headphones do double-duty. They reduce noise in two ways:

* Passively- They have comfortable, insulated ear cups that block a lot of outside noise. * Actively- They electronically cancel out sound waves. They do this by picking up a sound, processing it, and then creating a new sound that effectively cancels original sound. They work best on loud, monotonous sounds like rushing air in airplane cabins or engine noise.

These two methods combine to reduce unwanted noise. When you use these, you'll experience a noticeable quiet. This is very relaxing and once you've used these, you'll wonder how you ever survived without them.

What You Can Expect From A Good Noise Cancelling

While lessening all sounds, noise cancelling headphones best reduce persistent, droning background noises. They're best at reducing sounds like engine and air noise, traffic, background noise at your office, your neighbor's lawnmower.

If you wear these at home (as I often do), and your child screams, you'll still hear that. This can be either good or bad, depending on your perspective.

When you first put on noise canceling headphones, you'll initially notice passive effect- all noises are reduced by comfortable, padded, insulated ear cups.