There is a difference between EU residency, EU citizenship and visa-free travel. If you have German residency then you automatically have visa-free travel for 90/180 within the Schengen zone, plus you can get a visa for travel to everywhere else - exactly like any other pilot would. I'm a Brit and just last week I entered the Schengen zone as crew then flew to another Schengen country as crew. In a non-EU aircraft. With no visa or residency permit so I really don't think visas are a problem.
Granted, for an airline with bases in multiple EU countries being limited to one country only could be a problem, but if you're working for an airline which is only based in Germany there wouldn't be a problem and EU citizenship wouldn't give any extra benefits. I think in that scenario they couldn't justify discrimination. Plus in a pilot shortage they tend to be a bit more flexible.
Last edited by rudestuff; 23rd April 2024 at 20:01.