After a heart condition ended his dreams of flying, he turned from airspace to architectural space

Mr Nikhkil Rai had for a long time dreamed of soaring through the skies as a pilot in a Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) fighter jet. While other children played with toys or games, he immersed himself in videos of aircraft and pestered his uncle, who was a former RSAF pilot, with endless questions about flying.

When he was 17, his hopes of becoming a pilot were dashed. During a pre-enlistment national service (NS) medical screening in 2020, he was flagged and eventually diagnosed with Brugada syndrome – a rare but potentially life-threatening condition which sees the lower chambers of the heart beat fast and irregularly. This increases the risk of fainting and sudden cardiac arrest.

“I felt numb. I could not believe that out of everyone, I would be unlucky enough to have this heart condition,” said Mr Nikhkil, who does not need to take medication for the condition, but attends annual check-ups to monitor his heart’s electrical activity.

His new passion is in a different kind of space, rather than airspace.

The aspiring building information modeller enjoys using modelling software to see designs in a three-dimensional space, instead of two-dimensional floor plans. 

In May, Mr Nikhkil, 22, received the Tay Eng Soon Gold Medal, which is awarded to top graduates at polytechnics who had come from ITE.

Going from ITE to a polytechnic, he found that the deadlines for assignments were tighter and there were more group projects and interviews he had to conduct. He said that it pushed him to improve his time management skills and become more outspoken when interacting with new people. 

He graduated from Ngee Ann Polytechnic (NP) with a diploma in design, specialising in architecture.

“Architecture became my creative outlet,” he said, after the diagnosis of his heart condition. “It was a world to be explored.”

To cope with the setback, he threw himself into his studies, first at ITE College Central, where he received a Nitec in architectural technology, and then at NP.

Art and design interested him because they were related to his childhood ambition to be a pilot – he loved sketching planes. At the RSAF 55 Open House in September 2023, he gifted a hand-drawn picture of the McDonnell Douglas F-15SG Eagle fighter jet to Captain Gary Liang, the pilot who flew the aircraft. 

While studying at ITE, he started seeing spaces differently, noticing areas that could be improved to support inclusivity. His designs started to become more wheelchair-friendly, as well as catered to the elderly and people with mobility issues.

His three-year diploma studies in design at NP increased his passion for human-centric approach to architecture. For example, he learnt to consider the needs of different users of the building to decide on the amount of lighting that should be provided. 

Outside of school, he volunteers at grassroots events in Geylang, where he has noticed the struggles of the elderly around him like how they “avoid places with only stairs,” and how “noisy and crowded places can be stressful”. These observations remind him to include soundproof walls and grab bars for elderly-focused designs in the future.  

While Mr Nikhkil is looking forward to pursuing a bachelor’s degree in architecture and eventually a career in building information modelling, flying continues to excite him.

But he has to be content with loving it from a distance. He continues attending open houses organised by the Singapore Youth Flying Club and RSAF, where he sketches aircraft models on display or simply appreciates their beauty.

Mr Nikhkil said: “Although it still hurts that I can’t be a RSAF pilot, my love for aviation outweighs the pain. Anyway, I am happy with architecture.”