Dan Ross - Airmiles, Travel and Ditching the 9-5 for a Boarding Pass

What this episode covers

Dan recalls developing an early passion for aviation by collecting airline timetables at Newcastle Airport and role-playing as a travel agent, then flying alone at 13 to Barcelona to meet a newly discovered aunt in Spain. He wanted to be a pilot but ended up studying languages (French and Portuguese), and repeatedly applied to airline cadet schemes due to the cost of training. After hating jobs at a travel agency and also within financial services, he quit and secured a bursary for a 2017 Air Transport Management master’s at Loughborough, then worked a summer in Barcelona to learn Spanish. Post-master’s, he chose The Points Guy UK after meeting with founder Nicky Kelvin, learning points and miles on the job. He later reached the BA cadet scheme finals but decided his current freelance travel life offered more freedom than being a commercial pilot. Dan discussed valuing time over the cheapest fares, preferring early airport arrivals and enjoying the freedom of living life out of a suitcase.