Carnage Matey
No, sorry, I don't wear that at all. It is probably fair to assume that other than this allegation, BA had no grievance with the Captain. If they did, the obvious question is why they hadn't dealt with it before.
The only way they could sack them immediately would be to show gross misconduct.
It is also obviously in BAs interest to show that the allegations were baseless to begin with. They too have essentially admitted
that the pilots were in fact over the limit, which is a serious failure on their part as well.
I have been to an Industrial Tribunal, they are designed to be non-threatening and the experience is hardly traumatic- certainly not as traumatic as losing your career with no compensation.
No, they did a deal along the lines of "go now and you get a tiny bit of recompense, make us sack you and you get nothing".
The fact that these guys rolled over so easily tells any future employer that they are guilty as charged, whatever the truth might be.