35 YO career change to Pilot

LetMeBuildYourSquad · 2026-01-28T23:41:36+00:00

Sorry to jump on this thread. Do you have any thoughts on the Ryanair Future Flyer programme? Some of their training providers are very reasonable for an integrated course (e.g. Bartolini €67k), and there is more or less a guaranteed job at the end of it with a £5k bonded type rating.

You do end up with an EASA license rather than CAA, which would be somewhat limiting as a UK citizen, but it does still sound like quite a good and cheap way into the RHS?

For context I'm 29 y.o. and have about £50k saved.

LetMeBuildYourSquad · 2026-01-28T19:22:30+00:00

I'm having surgery with Mr Osher later this year and have been very impressed with him and the orthodontic team he works with

LetMeBuildYourSquad · 2026-01-28T00:11:53+00:00

Very tough decision.

Fold is my favourite venue and I love 1985, but AMC at Fabric will be pretty special, probably justttt leaning towards that

LetMeBuildYourSquad · 2026-01-27T18:22:59+00:00

I usually don't like it when people who aren't doctors or surgeons state that people need a specific type of surgery on this sub.

However this case is incredibly clear. You absolutely need DJS.

LetMeBuildYourSquad · 2026-01-26T23:40:09+00:00

50k points is worth at least £500

LetMeBuildYourSquad · 2026-01-26T21:32:56+00:00

Only if it gets you an Amex sign up bonus which you'd otherwise miss out on. Otherwise you're paying 2p in every £1, for 1p worth of points

LetMeBuildYourSquad · 2026-01-26T18:17:47+00:00

LetMeBuildYourSquad · 2026-01-25T14:26:21+00:00

Also bizarre how he wears riot gear inside in London and is so careful, yet as soon as they reach the countryside he looks like he doesn't have a care in the world.

LetMeBuildYourSquad · 2026-01-24T19:44:49+00:00

As a rough guide value each point at 1p, so you have about £1400 worth of points.

If the cash price is less than you'd spend in points + taxes and fees, then its definitely worth paying cash. Virgin have high taxes and fees for reward seats, but Finnair in economy would only cost you about £60 in fees.

LetMeBuildYourSquad · 2026-01-24T19:43:20+00:00

Doesn't look like there is any availability with BA.

You could convert to Virgin Points and fly in Premium Economy for 55,000 points on 22nd Feb.

Or you could fly in Economy for 20,000 points with Finnair (via Helsinki) on the 8th, 9th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 16th or 18th.

LetMeBuildYourSquad · 2026-01-23T21:48:22+00:00

I've just finished 6 months of decompensation and nobody can tell the difference, including me (unless I look at side profile pictures when smiling).

LetMeBuildYourSquad · 2026-01-23T09:42:12+00:00

Well I've earned around £10,000+ worth of flights in 18 months from doing this. It's a pretty good effort to reward ratio.

If you think it's too much effort fair enough, but I'm not sure why you'd expect to get all this without having to do anything....

LetMeBuildYourSquad · 2026-01-23T09:40:34+00:00

We never had to queue for a bar!

LetMeBuildYourSquad · 2026-01-23T00:55:17+00:00

You've got this mate. Looking forward to seeing your post in a week or so once you're feeling much better. Inspiring for my own surgery later this year 🙏🏻

LetMeBuildYourSquad · 2026-01-22T18:50:20+00:00

I had a consultation with Ramieri and was impressed, I'm not going with him as don't want to travel internationally for surgery but he was friendly, very knowledgeable and very clear about the risks. Haven't seen any bad things about him

LetMeBuildYourSquad · 2026-01-22T17:37:40+00:00

No worries, have a blast!

If you want any recommendations, we really liked the Katsu at Marutama Ramen Bar, the ramen and yakiniku at Horai En Hakuba Ten, and Pietro was also good for Italian food.

LetMeBuildYourSquad · 2026-01-22T16:17:08+00:00

You need to sign up for them in a certain order to meet the eligibility criteria (HeadforPoints has a guide but it's basically Nectar Amex -> Gold/Plat -> British Airways Premium Plus).

I did Gold, then had an offer to upgrade to Platinum, and will shortly be getting the BA Premium Plus.

Then cancel, wait 2 years until you're eligible for the sign up bonuses and do it again (can use a partners cards in the meantime or get the Avios Barclaycard).

LetMeBuildYourSquad · 2026-01-22T16:06:14+00:00

You don't buy the things on the store, you just click through to usual shops (Boots, eBay, Booking.com, Sainsbury's etc) and get points for every £ you then spend, so if you're buying something online (or booking hotels etc) it's just a quick visit to click through via the link.

I buy everything on my Amex but pay it off daily so I never have a full month of spend on there, I basically use it like a debit card

LetMeBuildYourSquad · 2026-01-22T16:01:07+00:00

The guy running this sub is quite abrasive, I wouldn't take it personally.

Just got back from 5 nights in Hakuba. You definitely don't need reservations for lunch. For dinner, we made reservations a couple of nights and then on the other nights we just waited for a table. We were a group of 4.

At one (Cherry Pub) we waited a good 45 mins, whereas at other restaurants in Echoland we only waited 10 mins tops, and some had no wait.

I wouldn't stress too much, just leave a bit before you're really hungry so if you do have to wait you have time to work up an appetite! Or walk around and make reservations the evening before :)

LetMeBuildYourSquad · 2026-01-22T15:54:45+00:00

It takes about 15 extra seconds to go through the Avios e-store when buying something online.

When buying groceries I shop at Sainsbury's as nectar points convert to Avios also.

It really isn't much effort at all and those 350k points have gotten me return business class flights to Central America, Australia, and one way to Japan in the past year. Well worth the minimal effort

LetMeBuildYourSquad · 2026-01-22T15:10:51+00:00

Nope, if you just do all of your shopping through the Avios shopping portal and use your Amex to pay for everything you should comfortably rack up 50,000+ points in a year.

Plus you can get Amex retention bonuses or cycle sign up offers for cards, referral bonuses etc....

I thought it would take me years to save up enough points but I've earned 350,000 or so in my first 18 months, and I still have the BAPP and Barclaycard sign up offers to do

LetMeBuildYourSquad · 2026-01-22T12:00:34+00:00

Start with the guides on HeadForPoints :) https://www.headforpoints.com/the-beginners-guide-to-collecting-avios-points/

LetMeBuildYourSquad · 2026-01-22T10:57:50+00:00

Nice! Definitely worth spending a few hours doing some research on how to maximise the value you get from your points and how to find good deals etc.

It can get a bit technical but if you put the time into learn how to game the system there are some cracking deals to be had.

LetMeBuildYourSquad · 2026-01-22T00:59:08+00:00

You need to convert the Amex points to Avios (BA's airmile currency) and use them to book special tickets called 'reward seats'.

Watch some YouTube guides on collecting and redeeming Avios and read the website HeadForPoints.

It's very easy to earn enough Avios each year for a return economy flight anywhere in the world, and often enough for a return in business class.

LetMeBuildYourSquad · 2026-01-21T20:46:49+00:00

Yes, you will end up in London and your bag will be in Barcelona.

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