I added several comments to the original post which appeared when Balpa started their campaign in earnest earlier this year. I wrote to all my MEPs and MP only to get a 'cut and paste' reply from those who even bothered to reply (approximately 2/3), which had obviously been supplied by Brian Simpson MEP who was at the time the EU Rapporteur (sp?) and who had put the proposals forward.
For those who don't know, he is an ex-school teacher here in the North West of the UK who jumped on the gravy train that is the EU. He was apparently sponsored by a cabin crew union (not sure which one and quite frankly couldn't be bothered to find out) which gave him his impetus to push for a harmonised set of FTLs (mainly for cabin crew), which may be admirable but is a totally seperate issue from harmonising FTL for flight deck to less limiting times.
I also went to see him in his constituency office with a senior captain from my airline who was about to retire but still had the wish to assist Balpa with their campaign. Simpson was bombastic and refused to listen to any argument we put. He dismissed all our concerns with the fact that the CAA could keep their more limiting FTLs therefore we had nothing to worry about. The simplistic view was astounding and he dismissed as 'not his problem' the fact that pressure would be brought to bear on the UK CAA to change to the less limiting FTLs of the rest of the EU. We even pointed out that our airline is part of a German owned group, so there may be an incentive to re-flag under a 'flag of convenience' to get round the issue. Again, 'not my problem'. His sole objective was to harmonise, at any cost otherwise he would have failed. Why was he given the job in the first place? It appears that he had a passing interest in civil aviation and word got round the office when they were looking for someone to take on the role. He has no aviation background or experience in the field other than in the role as rapporteur and refuses to take any of the concerns about lack of scientific evidence because, and I quote, 'for every report you quote that says it is unsafe, I have a desk full that say that it is safe'. I asked for sources so that I could read these reports, but he couldn't think of any at the time...........
He did indeed lose his seat in the recent EU elections, which was comforting to hear, but unfortunately the process had moved on from where he really mattered and was with the Council of Ministers, his proposals being complete.
It is a sad fact that not enough UK pilots are actively taking an interest in this subject, perhaps due to their misconception that we'll be alright with our get out clause. A colleague of mine attended the protest outside the EU parliament along with other pilots from throughout Europe. I know due to work commitments that not many would be able to attend, but only about 100 pilots were there and only 5 from the UK. Very sad indeed.
We must keep the pressure on and write to our MPs and MEPs and the Transport Minister to express our concerns. Balpa members can even get a template letter from the Balpa website. It couldn't be easier really, just half an hour on a day off. I personally think that the campaign must be pushed harder with the general public. OK they might have this image that we get paid too much and sit on beaches, but highlighting the differences mentioned above about bus and truck drivers and us with the associated effect on safety margins will eventually strike a chord. The public assume that we are highly protected and assume that we are never tired when sitting up front. They still assume that when we get to Tenerife we will be on the beach probably before them.............
PP