Jamie Bhatti hopes to be flying on and off the pitch this weekend after gaining his full Private Pilot Licence (PPL) last week. 

The experienced prop will take to the field on Friday night against Benetton as Glasgow Warriors play their first competitive home game since securing the URC title last season.

If Glasgow can secure victory then Bhatti will celebrate by putting his flying skills and he could be joined by some familiar faces. 

Asked whether his teammates would trust him behind the wheel, Bhatti laughed: “Hopefully we’ll get a couple of nice days at the weekend and we can go up! I can take passengers with me. And with the PPL you can start adding to it, kick on and try to make a job of it.

“I passed it on Wednesday and it took just under two years. I started November 2022, had my first lesson then, and passed my skills test last week. It was a two-hour flight with an external examiner. It was good. You go out and you do a bit of navigation first and then it’s your general handling, all your stalls and steep turns, and then it’s back to the airfield in Cumbernauld for your take offs and landings, emergency procedures and all that.”

The 31-year-old still has plenty of miles in the tank in his playing career but securing his pilot licence was in preparation for life after rugby. 

“Aye, we’ll see what happens,” Bhatti replied on whether becoming a pilot was a future career dream. “ Hopefully, but I need to pass the exams first! They are not the same level as the APTL. They are a wee bit more in depth and there are four more subjects but I can just try and chip away at them.”

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Glasgow suffered a devastating last-minute defeat in their URC opener against Ulster last week. Franco Smith’s men will be aiming to bounce back against a Benetton side full of Italian internationals but Bhatti knows it will be a tough test.

“It’s good to be back at Scotstoun and hopefully we’ll get a sell-out,” Bhatti admitted. “It’s the first home game as champions so hopefully everyone comes along and brings their lungs with them and it’s a good atmosphere for the boys. They’re a real good side. Look at the quality they’ve got, they’re pretty much a full Italian XV. We see this place as a bit of a fortress and we need to get our game out there.”