Some bases have in recent months become way cheaper percentage wise than the Hong Kong base has.
For instance, London base is on half salary as far as cx is concerned.
Even if you put a Hong Kong based pilot on 50 percent pay cut, cx only really saves 20-30 percent if you consider education allowance and housing still go on uncut.
If there’s a new contract in Hong Kong, I’m sure the bases won’t be far behind with similar cuts.
So I estimate bases will stay relevant for the time being, if anything it will probably be more relevant.