23-Million Miler Tom Stuker’s Top Tips For Air Travel | Travel News

While travel tips are readily available these days from various sources online and on social media, chances are, they probably will not be from a person who has flown 23 million miles. Meet Tom Stuker, the man who has done precisely that by flying all around the world for years now, always staying loyal to his favorite airline, United Airlines.

A brief history

Based in Chicago, Tom has been a member of United’s Mileage Plus loyalty program since 1983 and has always flown with United or one of the other Star Alliance member airlines. It took him 19 years to fly his first five million miles and then a further ten years to reach 10 million miles, making him United’s first-ever passenger to do so.

In fact, in 2011, when Tom crossed the 10 million miles mark, United honored him by naming one of its Boeing 747-400 after him. The airline also held celebrations in the air and on the ground when Tom passed the 20 million miles mark.

It is reported that Tom’s favorite seat is 1B and that he once went 12 days without sleeping on a bed by just jetting around the world.

His advice for summer travel

During an interview with the Washington Post, when asked if the veteran in flying; had any tips for this year’s summer travels, Tom came up with four points.

1. Friendly cabin crews

The first thing Tom suggested was being friendly and complimenting the first flight attendant a passenger meets upon boarding the aircraft and thanking them for their outstanding service the last time, even if there was not a last time.

“She’s the head attendant. I always say, ‘I remember you! You gave us such great service last time. I wanted to thank you again.’ Even if I’ve never…

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- Start searching at least 2 months in advance and sign up for email alerts so you'll always be notified when flight prices drop.
- Budget airlines typically offer the cheapest flights.
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- Use an aggregator site to compare prices across airlines.
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