While traveling through airports, I’ve noticed that flight crews all have luggage that’s different from my own carry-on. It’s serious-looking luggage, there to get a job done, both larger and more utilitarian than the typical suitcase. It ignores the frivolities—colorful plastic shells, easy-to-maneuver spinning wheels, USB charging—that many people have come to expect. And as it turns out, luggage manufacturers do make lines of luggage especially for flight crews, pieces that they usually sell via to-the-industry retailers. But would I swap my bag for the luggage the flight crews use?

It’s always tempting, when looking for the best things, to go with what the pros have—after all, that gear must be better if the pros use it. So I compared a limited-edition professional-grade suitcase, Travelpro’s Crew Expert—which the company is now selling to regular people—with our top pick for carry-on luggage (as well as an actual flight-crew bag) to see how it stacked up. The short answer: The tougher something is, often the heavier it becomes. And after many weeks of testing all three bags, I think most travelers are better off sticking with our pick, the light but still tough Travelpro Platinum Elite.

The Crew Expert is available in two sizes: a more carry-on–compliant 19¾-inch-tall model and a limit-pushing 21¼-inch model, which has a suiter inside. Photo: Caleigh Waldman

What is a professional flight-crew suitcase, anyway?

Flight crews purchase their luggage from retailers that specialize in flight-crew gear and often require employee ID numbers or airline referral codes that most people don’t have access to. These bags are stronger than most civilian bags, over-engineered to withstand the rigors of constant daily use aboard airplanes and going through airports. However, for a limited time (how limited isn’t yet clear), Travelpro—the maker of our top pick in carry-on luggage for six years now, and a company that built its name and reputation on making luggage for flight crews—is selling a version of its professional model to everyone. It’s called the Crew Expert.

Wait—is this really the same bag that flight crews use?

It’s almost the same bag. I got both models of Travelpro’s Crew suitcases: the one Travelpro sells only to flight crews (the FlightCrew 5) and the new, limited-edition Crew Expert. Looking them over, I found the two bags to be almost identical except for some minor variations in the pocket layout and some additions to the interior of the limited-edition bag that lend it some amenities most regular travelers will appreciate, such as a built-in garment bag and a clear toiletries bag.

The biggest differences between the Crew Expert and the line sold to flight crews appear in the bag’s interior, where Travelpro adds some conveniences most travelers have come to expect, such as transparent toiletry bags. Photo: Caleigh Waldman

How does a flight-crew-quality suitcase compare to our top pick?

After comparing the Crew Expert with our top carry-on pick, the Travelpro Platinum Elite, I can say that the Crew Expert is the stronger of the two bags. However, that added toughness comes at a cost: extra weight and the loss of a few features we like on the Platinum Elite. (Although prices can vary online, Travelpro currently prices the Crew Expert and the Platinum Elite similarly, within about $40 of each other.)

On the outside, these two bags look very similar. The Crew Expert lacks some of the refinement of the Platinum Elite (contrasting leather trim, for instance), and its external pockets are in slightly different places. But if it weren’t for a certain amount of burliness in the Crew Expert, it would be hard to tell these two bags apart—until you picked them up. Prioritizing the strength of a bag almost invariably means making it heavier than most people would prefer. Weighing 9.5 pounds by our measure, the Crew Expert is nearly 2 pounds heavier than a similar-size Platinum Elite.

Once I opened up the two bags—removing the interior linings and taking apart their bases—the reason for the extra weight became clear. The tubing throughout the Crew Expert’s frame is twice as wide and much heavier than that of the Platinum Elite. The cloth handles are reinforced with thick nylon bands, the tubes of the extending handle are wider and stronger, and even the rubber edging along the seams of the bag is thicker. Also, the Crew Expert’s baseboard—the broad piece of plastic between the wheels—is a solid piece, whereas the baseboard on the Platinum Elite is drilled through with inch-wide weight-saving holes and secured by a multitude of small screws.

The Platinum Elite’s plastic baseboard is perforated with holes and secured with a litany of small screws. Photo: Caleigh Waldman

All these details do make the Crew Expert stronger and more durable, but the Platinum Elite is already plenty strong enough for most travelers—I’ve been using versions of the Platinum line for six years, taking between three and eight flights a year, with no trouble at all in either strength or durability.

You sacrifice some features and comforts in this tougher version of the bag, as well. For instance, the Platinum Elite has a battery pocket with a USB port through its exterior, while the Crew Expert does not. Also, the handles on the Crew Expert are secured directly to the frame of the bag for a stronger connection; the Platinum Elite, on the other hand, uses plastic hinges to provide a little more flexibility and movement of the handle, which makes it more comfortable to use. In the past, luggage designers have told us that such flexibility leads to fewer breaks, but in comparing the two bags, I found that the Crew Expert’s more firmly attached rails felt much stronger while still managing to offer enough give. This design also made the Crew Expert’s handle more comfortable to use. Both the Crew Expert and the Platinum Elite have plenty of external expansion and travel pockets, and the two models’ larger (21¼-inch) sizes come with identical suiters.

The Crew Expert has extra-thick polyurethane wheels. Photo: Caleigh Waldman

One upgrade I love on the Crew Expert is its extra-thick polyurethane wheels. Not only are they a dream to wheel around, but they’re also nearly impossible to destroy and, if the impossible does happen, a cinch to replace. (A single screw both holds the wheel in place and serves as the axle.) That’s not to say that the wheels on the Platinum Elite are bad; they’re more than enough for most people’s needs. But the polyurethane on the Platinum Elite is skimpier, and the wheel is slightly more difficult to replace.

Replacing the Crew Expert’s wheels does assume, however, that you’re traveling with spare wheels on hand (some crew members do) and that you have access to the tools necessary. (Pilots might be allowed to have a multi-tool aboard a plane. You? Not so much.) Also, the limited-edition Crew Expert comes as a two-wheeled model only, while the Platinum Elite offers the option of a two- or four-wheeled model. Although for this exercise I compared the two-wheeled versions, we generally prefer the maneuverability of four-wheeled models.

Travelpro redesigned the top handle of the Platinum Elite a few years ago to lie flat when not in use. It still flexes comfortably in the palm of your hand, however. Photo: Caleigh Waldman

The bottom line: Should you buy a professional flight-crew suitcase?

If you’re not part of a professional flight crew, I think you’re better off purchasing our top carry-on pick. Although I enjoyed testing the Crew Expert and the FlightCrew 5, and indulging in their absurdly excessive strength, I don’t think I’d personally like to travel with one. In the same way it may seem like overkill to use a Humvee to carry kids to soccer practice, the Crew Expert is too heavy-duty for the job most travelers need their suitcase to do. It also eschews niceties that most modern travelers enjoy, such as spinner wheels and USB hubs. Yes, the Crew Expert is a hardier bag than the Platinum Elite, but the Platinum Elite is already strong enough to stand up to most of what an airline can dish out. If you are particularly abusive to your luggage, or travel more than 20 times a year, or relish knowing that your luggage is the toughest on the plane, the Crew Expert could be for you. But most people would never notice the small trade-offs in toughness that make the Platinum Elite lighter and more maneuverable—and ultimately more enjoyable to travel with.