Imho it’s a very sensible and very very temporary solution to the current labour issues exacerbated by post Brexit immigration rules on entry and work VISAs . These crew’s can fly some Spanish registered 320s and the Gatwick cheap fleet routes over the summer and then be released.
Come the winter I predict the UK will be in full scale recession and the current blip in air travel demand (fuelled by vouchers holders) in the leisure markets to have fizzled out.
If anything I can see unemployment rates ( artificially low at the moment) rise exponentially and the wage pressure ( currently upwards) to both change trajectories.
A significant period of economic adjustment to take place over several quarters as the UK PLC GDP retracts within the new realities.
In my own company I am having to project a drop in work post July based on current enquiries domestically ( remain low in many sectors) and indeed within the EU to a lesser extent.
Construction is struggling in many markets ( here and across the EU) and a specialist fire product manufacturer ( where lead periods are three plus months for deliveries ) often sees these trends quite early on .
Materials: metals glass timber and electronics are in short supply globally with delivery delays and ever rising prices extending our finished product dispatches from The UK, Spain, and Poland and impacting in Portugal as well.
Taking “ permanent staff” on at the moment is not such a good deal for employers or shareholder value , more rather managing the situation is the goal even it that impacts some revenues ( over yield) with cancellation some compensation payment risk, and a little customer disappointment in the process.