​Many of us as youngsters yearned to become pilots. We envisioned the “glamorous” jet-setting lifestyle with plenty of comely companionship on trips to exotic locations like Rio, Tahiti and Paris, feasting on the local cuisine and strolling along wide beaches and narrow cobblestone streets. Little did we know that the occupation would involve long duty days, early starts, multiple time zone changes, uncomfortable hours confined in a tight cockpit while breathing desert-dry air.