What’s the latest on redundancy’s ? Is the pilot headcount still large ?
There have been no updates. That said, I believe that there will be an agreement in place to avoid CR. It is not in BA's interest to reduce its pilot workforce long term. Yes, it's a dire situation at the moment but things WILL recover. BA is in a decent position and will be very eager to recapture market share and capitalise on failures/temporary absences elsewhere.
BA spend a lot on recruiting its pilots. It invests hugely in their training. Why get rid of them to only have to recruit all over again. Its not a cheap process and we all know what a fussy bunch they are - it will take time.
At the pessimistic end, I see a case whereby if CR is required, those unfortunate may be put on some kind of future recall - at the pilot's choice, of course.