Jame
If you have the skills and the diligence to learn, nothing can beat a top engineer. Have you thought of the military as an option, for aviation crew training? I don't know what the physical/medical requirements are, but you'd get some excellent training, I'm sure.
And as an engineer, you could earn a nice sum of money, and then blow it all on building your own aircraft in your spare time, which you could fly for recreational purposes... Burt Rutan and the Scaled Composites folks are looking for skilled workers, but they do say you have to be a US Citizen....Do a google search for their website (I'm assuming I can't post it on here, but its very easy to find).
Good luck, and don't give up. You'll find the right job in the aviation world
