Source: 2024 Q2 Beartracks, Tyler Williams
I like clean organized spaces. Well, at least I do in my airplane and in my kitchen. My truck, on the other hand, is a complete mess…always. It looks like I live in it, which sometimes I do. But not a lot goes on inside the truck that forces me to be meticulous about it being clean and organized. I sit, hold the wheel, throw the snacks in the center console and turn on some good tunes. My kitchen is a different story. My chef’s knife is sharp, my spices are stocked and I am a stickler for “mis en place.” When everything is in its place, I can work efficiently and get into a flow to create, improvise and make great food.
Operating the airplane is a similar experience for me. I like everything in its place, the plane prepped and my mind sharp for the task at hand. Flying a plane, at least the way I do it, involves much more than road tripping in the truck. I don’t just get in, hold the wheel and follow the line on the map. From the preflight, to the engine management, to flying the terrain and improvising the route around weather and airspace, to chatting with ATC and jotting down instructions, there’s always something to do. An organized cockpit helps keep the mind free for the important things, and I don’t like anything flopping around loose. When flying far, I need water, a bag of snacks, sometimes a pen and paper, sometimes I need my flashlight, I’ve got my InReach on and I like to plug in my phone for music. I keep a lot of stuff in the back of the airplane too and it all needs a secure place to rest. From the basic things like a screwdriver, fuel tester and a small flashlight that get used every preflight, to the just-in-case tool kit, spare fasteners, tubes and patches, to control locks, tie downs, travel chocks and a first aid kit, I like to have what I need, when I need it. You can usually find help anywhere in the lower 48, but it sure is nice to have what you need to handle things, in flight and on the ground.
When I finished the Bearhawk and started venturing across state lines, I kept all the tool kits and spares in a duffel bag in the baggage area. But, digging through a bag of stuff to find what you can be annoying at best. For the cockpit items, I initially used the side pockets installed by my feet and the seat back pockets to stow checklists, small items, snacks and water bottles. But we travel as a family often and I like to keep those seat back pockets clear for my kids to stow their drawing paper, books, cards and such. My side pocket is best kept minimal so I can get my checklist or writing pad without fumbling around down there while trying to fly and my wife likes to have her side available for her magazine or book.
I got some inspiration from some nice overland camper trucks that used the MOLLE (Modular Lightweight Load-carrying Equipment) system to organize gear and tools. I saw seat-back MOLLE panels with small pouches and also some nice tailgate MOLLE panels for easy access to tools, even when the truck is loaded with gear. That seemed like the perfect solution for my plane. Our doors are all recessed slightly from the interior so there’s a little space there that can be used to hang a MOLLE panel and install some organizers.
I made mine out of PVC coated Cordura nylon. I found some basic dimensions for the standard laser-cut Molle grid, drew it out on the fabric and simply melted the slits with a soldering iron. Mine are 1.12” wide slits, spaced ¼” apart horizontally and 1” apart vertically. I probably don’t have the exact military spec, but it was easy to lay out and fits all the attachments well. Someone more digital savvy could do the layout on a computer and have the fabric laser cut for a faster and more precise, factory looking result. I installed snaps in the door frames and fabric and snapped on the panels. They are lightweight and work great. Up front, I have my water bottle holder, sunglasses, pen, charge cord pouch, a place to keep my phone and snacks and my fire extinguisher secured on the door for easy access and still have all the elbow room I need. The passenger door has a panel as well with the same drink holder and stuff pouches and my wife loves it. The big panel on the aft baggage door stores my first aid kit, gust locks, travel chocks, extra quart of oil and funnel, preflight tools, hanging luggage scale, spare fuel cap, pitot cover, etc. etc. You can certainly stuff all these things under the back seat and that works just fine. But it sure is nice when the plane is fully loaded to be able to just pop the baggage door open and grab what you need.