Joraymi Jamaludin was once considered a hero.

But it's not something you would know based on the 55-year-old's current state, struggling to make ends meet day after day.

Once a captain in the Royal Malaysian Airforce (RMAF), Joraymi was perhaps best known for being a DHC-4 Caribou cargo jet.

The plane is capable of taking off and landing quickly and on slopes, making it suitable for operations in the interiors of Borneo.

Joraymi served in the airforce from 1992 until 1998, and among his fondest memories is helping put out forest fires in....