Biknd might be a new name to you when it comes to bike bags, but its Jetpack is super secure and ideal for keeping your pride and joy safe from the depredations of baggage ‘handlers’.
Its main party trick is the fact it uses a rigid spine at the bottom of the case that locks your bike in via the front and rear axles, keeping it raised off the floor and hence insulated from being dropped hard onto the ground.
It comes with a number of axle inserts included that can cope with anything from road bikes to downhill rigs, and while initial set-up can be a touch fiddly, it’s secure as anything once you’ve got it sorted out.
Best of all you can leave your disc rotors in place, safe in the knowledge they won’t get bent out of shape
Then all you need to do is whip your wheels and bars off the bike and fasten the Velcro strap-on piece that holds your bars securely to the top tube and down tube.
Another advantage of the spine-style design is that both sides of the case can be unzipped to allow easy access to your bike when locked in and it also means the case can be folded down to reduce the height significantly when not in use.
That said, the Jetpack’s best party trick has to be the way it protects your wheels when in use. As in most high-end bags, they fit into external pockets but there are also inflatable donut-like sections that protect the wheels from damage.
Along with hard shell covers that you strap over the ends of your hubs, it means that you don’t need to worry about your wheels doing damage to your bike and best of all you can leave your disc rotors in place, safe in the knowledge they won’t get bent out of shape.
As well as a couple of straps, there’s a pull strap that’s in the right place to pull the bag along on its wheels. In fact, the only downside to the Jetpack — apart from the inevitably high cost — is the sheer weight of the thing.
At 13kg it’s a fair old bit of heft before you’ve even put a bike in there. With less generous budget airlines, you’ll struggle to get a normal mountain bike in before incurring fees, so make sure you weigh the whole combo before flying.