Now what will the crew complement be? 2 Capt, 2 FO? SO? Whatever it will be will be overkill…...
That is not correct Global.
At the moment the proposed crew complement is that currently used; 1 Captain, 1 F/O and 2 S/Os. SQ used 2 Captains and 2 F/Os.
The significance of this is that for one crewmember to rest in the latter part of the cruise, the other front seat pilot will have been in the seat for 4 or 5 hours prior to commencing the approach, having had probably 3 rest breaks comprising maybe two continuous periods of sleep of 3 to 4 hours at best. If the suggested ETD is that mentioned previously, the crew may not have slept 'normally' in a convention bed for around 36 hours. That sounds adequate if your at home and going to spend a day doing whatever you do, but not if your are required to be adequately rested for an approach that is routine most days but potentially challenging on others.
It's not that the pilots don't want to do these trips, it's that they want scientifically based information and an appropriate crew complement to ensure that they are able to operate it safely with the minimum impact on their health.
They also believe there are significant efficiencies by the very nature of the operation without, for example, intervening layovers and the associated costs, that further efficiencies sought by the company are unnecessary given the huge efficiencies gained with the 787 award.