Elephant in the sky

"I fly the new A380 ‘Super Jumbo’ for Emirates and am the first Indian in the world to do so. And being a Parsi is a matter of great pride to me,” wrote Capt Cyrus Cama to Parsiana last October.

The world’s first double-decker aircraft which completed a year of flying a while ago, has a wing span of 79.8 m so airports have had to be redesigned to accommodate it. "Maneuvering on the ground is the most demanding part,” Cama told The Times of India (November 12, 2008) adding, "The JFK airport in New York has dedicated taxi ways and parking stands for it…When I saw it the first time at the Dubai air show last year I was amazed by its sheer size.”

Cama flies the huge beast on the 13.5-hour Dubai-New York route for Emirates Airlines. The return takes about 12 hours, he is quoted in the article. One of the eight pilots chosen for Emirates’ first A380 training batch, Cama, 40, has clocked over 11,500 hours of flying and is a "line instructor on almost all wide-bodied and new aircraft including the B777, A330, A340 and now the A380,” mentions the Times.

The Bandra boy has flying in his blood: "I grew up with an aviation York York has dedicated taxi ways and parking stands for it…When I saw it the first time at the Dubai air show last year I was amazed by its sheer size.”

Cama flies the huge beast on the 13.5 hour Dubai-New York route for Emirate Airlines. The return takes about 12 hours, he is quoted in the article. One of the eight pilots chosen for Emirates’ first A380 training batch, Cama, 40, has over over 11,500 hours of flying and is a "line instructor on almost all wide-bodied and new aircraft,” mentions the Times.

The Bandra boy has flying in his blood: " I grew up with an aviation background. My father Phiroze Cama owned an aviation company called Cama Aviation Services based near the Bombay Flying Club at Juhu Airport, so I have been exposed to aviation since childhood,” he noted in an e-mail response to Parsiana.

Alongside: The A380 with Capt Cyrus Cama (inset) and with his family

"Elation, not fear,” is Cama’s ruling emotion as he flies the super jet. "It’s the best job in the world in my humble opinion. Being in command of a big jet liner with so many people on board and flying all over the world has a joy that can’t be described in words. Having flown a wide number of large commercial jet liners (B777-200/300, A330, A340-300/500, A380, etc) is more than any pilot in the world can ask for,” his job satisfaction is palpable.

How do you feel when you are up there, with so many people in your safe keeping? Is there any element of spiritual help? we wondered. "I believe in the existence of a supernatural being but I am not very spiritual or fanatical,” he confides, adding, "I don’t think about the 500+ people I have on board, just take it in my stride as part of my job. However a silent Ashem Vohu and Yatha Ahu Vairyo always has a calming effect.”

An alumnus of the Jamnabai Narsee School in Juhu and Bombay’s St Xavier’s College, Cama went to Los Angeles to complete his commercial pilot’s licence in 1988. He moved to Dubai 10 years ago with wife Dehlna (née Dalal) whom he had first met in college. Their son Zaal, 12, a grade 8 student in an international school in Dubai, loves football and tennis. Daughter Zoey, eight, studying in grade 4 at the Dubai International Academy, "only believes in bullying her dad who spoils her rotten!” confesses Cama.

Cama’s father Phiroze is now semi-retired. His mother Jeroo manages a beauty salon ("to keep herself occupied,” he notes parenthetically). Younger sister Farzana Munim is involved with the education field in Bombay.

An "avid follower of Formula One and any motor sport (racing mainly),” Cama says he loves fast cars and drives a Porsche Cayman. He also confesses to "being a bit of a health freak,” gym-ing four-five times a week. A lover of the outdoors, he says he enjoys white water rafting and camping in India a few times a year. Happy though he is with all that he has achieved in his professional life as a pilot, Cama qualifies, "It’s not the end of the road. I still have many years left (God willing) and many more milestones to achieve. I would also like to pursue my non flying interests more — like outdoor adventures, etc.”

Cama is "proud to be a Parsi. Though small in numbers we have left our mark in every field possible globally.” He had told the Times, "Since I am a Parsi, this achievement was of special significance, considering that it was a Parsi (J. R. D. Tata) who brought aviation to India.”

In response to Parsiana’s queries Cama notes, "We have a fair number of Parsi pilots and engineers in Emirates here in Dubai and worldwide.” Some of them, he says, he socializes with in Dubai though he is not too aware of the rest of the Zoroastrian community there. But he is fully conscious of the commu­nity’s burning issue — the declining numbers. "Anybody who thinks they are not, is insane! The writing is on the wall for a long time; sadly, in a few decades, we shall virtually be extinct as a community.”