Up In the Air   

Tom Stuker, a automotive consultant, has just passed the 10 million frequent flier miles mark after completing nearly 6,000 flights with United Airlines.

In a lifetime of travel, he has flown the equivalent of 400 round-the-world trips, or 20 trips to the moon and back, or flying Chicago, Illinois, to Houston, Texas, 5,400 times! He is averaging 29,000 miles per month.

Does this story sound familiar?

In 2009, George Clooney and the delightful Anna Kendrick starred in a fantastic film about a man (Clooney) who was targeting 10 million 'lifetime miles'. It is based on Stuker's life of travel.

The surprising thing is, it's not just Tom Stuker at it, building up his 'mileage account'. There are loads of people at it. Even more surprisingly, 10 million miles isn't even a big deal to these people!

Take a look at this documentary that interviews some of these ultra-frequent fliers, following two such men as they traverse the entire length of the United States, Central America and South America. And back, of course. Amassing over 40,000 frequent flier miles in the process. One fellow on the video has an account with 18 million miles.

He also talks of one person who has amassed over 100 million miles!

This is a must-see for anybody with a fear of flying. Something about making the process of going flying so incredibly normal, even mundane, takes all the worry out of it.


Frequent Flyer from Gabriel Leigh on Vimeo