Originally Posted by
Photoplanet
Many of the comments in this thread seem to assume that only BA pilots will be seconded, and that these personnel will be used to fly planes...
From the Daily Mail (and I do apologise for using this as a source):
"BRITISH Airways pilots and other aviation staff could be loaned to the RAF for up to four years........Staff could be seconded in flying and groundbased roles"...
So no official guarantee of a flying seat at this point.
In addition, could this move be seen as 'State Aid' to BA? The wording on any contract would have to be very carefully drafted to avoid other airlines crying foul.
I too would question why British Airways seems to be the centre of interest here, especially when BALPA is quoted as being heavily involved. They draw their membership from all over the UK airlines together with the attendant subscriptions, so why all this talk of British Airways rather than British Airlines? We all know the old saw of it being the British Airways Line Pilots Association but it seems there may be some truth in that from what we are being told. Obviously those who have recently left the RAF to the join the airlines may be a more practical choice for the RAF to draw from, and perhaps the majority of them joined BA. I don't know if that is the case but if it is then the emphasis should be on those in that category and not on any particular airline.
As to State Aid, BA have had more of its share of that over the years not least from not being broken up into separate long haul and short haul companies when privatised to even out more the competition with the so called 'Independents'. There is also the near monopoly of the LHR Slots of course. The combination of those two silver spoons meant that for years contractions in the industry meant that Independent pilots lost their jobs while BA ones kept theirs. Is this scheme designed to continue that process and if so, why?
Can we take it as read that when the Daily Mail is quoted a standard apology is implicit in that? I grow tired of seeing it repeated ad nauseum here...