“similar snares come to mind...” (line 17) means that ‘other equivalent solutions are engendered’.

“... the alpha and omega of a working shift.” (lines 33- 34) can be understood as ‘the positive and negative feature of a working shift’.

“... the pen has replaced the wrench,” (line 35) can be interpreted as ‘understanding the documents have become more important than being able to use hardware tools’.

“eighteen years down the road,” (lines 43-44) means that ‘eighteen years after piloting airplanes’.

“... both in the hangar and at the ramp.” (lines 72-73) can be interpreted as ‘in the backstage and all hidden areas of professional training’.