In 1990, a man spent $510,000 on a US airline lifetime flight pass…24 million miles later, here’s how it’s going
In 1990, Tom Stuker paid a not-so-small fortune for a United Airlines lifetime flight pass. The pass, which rang up at $290,000 per person at the time, allows Stuker to book flights for himself and a companion to wherever he pleases, whenever he wants. Was it worth it? Let’s do the math.
Stuker is an international car dealership consultant who owns his firm, Stuker Training. As such, his work requires frequent travel, including hundreds of trips to Australia. Over 30 years ago, United Airlines offered lifetime first-class flight passes in an effort to raise funds. At the time, United was in financial hot water while the country suffered through a recession. A single pass ran buyers $290,000. You could add a companion pass for a grand total of $510,000, which is what Stuker did.
While considered a business expense, Stuker calls the pass a total gamble. Fortunately for him, it paid off. How? United obviously survived the nineties, and Stuker hasn’t stopped flying (literally) since buying the pass. In fact, he’s considered United’s most frequent flyer who isn’t a staff member.
For instance, in 2019, Stuker took 343 flights, which would have cost him more than $2 million. That’s nearly four times the amount he paid for the passes themselves – and all in a single year.
In addition to a lifetime of flights, Stuker accrued millions of redeemable miles before the airline switched from miles traveled to dollars spent. Since he already had a lifetime travel pass, Stuker used the points to pay for hotel rooms, cruises, and other “luxury” purchases. He apparently once cashed in $50,000 in Walmart gift cards.
While the airline no longer allows lifetime pass holders to accrue redeemable miles, Stuker earns an annual deposit of bonus miles on top of his lifetime pass.
By June 2024, Stuker posted on Instagram that he’d booked over 12,000 flights spanning more than 24 million miles with United Airlines via his lifetime travel pass. He spends much of his in-air time working and planning future flights for himself, his family, and his friends, who’ve visited dozens of countries over the years.
What does the airline think of Stuker? They love him, for the most part. Despite the financial loss they surely sustain through his nonstop pass use, he’s a flexible and friendly passenger and is on positive terms with United staff. If anything, he’s a huge advocate for the airline.
These days, Stuker averages about a million miles per year and expects to cross 25 million miles early next year.
