Wouldn't be the first time, when QLink introduced the Q-400 in Melbourne the -300 captains without seniority had to move base or accept FO positions, some both. All depends whether you want to accept seniority as a captain vs base seniority vs overall seniority, vs type seniority.
Except we don't have any of those. I don't even know what seniority means anymore. It's just what ever suits on a particular given day to fix a particular problem.
Anyway I think the message is loud and clear the future lies elsewhere if you are a junior FO who would like to be a captain one day.
you expect a current Jet captain to take a demotion just so you can get ‘your’ command?
Yes. That is the nature of seniority. Just have a look at QF mainline.
It is not the best system but it is the best of a bad choice. However we don't even have a "system" as such.
If we don't want to have a seniority system, that's OK but that needs to be advertised so people can organise themselves accordingly.