Re: BA pilots 'prepared to strike'
There is also another very small group who are also very concerned. All pilots who were 'unfairly dismissed' (ie made redundant by BA, which ignored the Dan Air seniority list when selecting for redundancy) now have a preserved pension with the BA NAPS pension scheme.
BA paid £1 to buy DA. At the time there was a £17 million surplus in the DA pilots pension scheme. This sum was originally transfered direct to BA profit/loss account. After Balpa negotiation, it was eventually agreed that £8 million would be used to upgrade pension accrued to date by 10% for those being made redundant (or more correctly - illegally unfairly dismissed as subsequently ruled by an industrial court two years later). Some of that £8 million was also used to pay for early retirement for some older captains.
However, £9million stayed in the BA kitty.
I simply mention this to show others out there the lack of ethics in the way BA is run. I advise BA pilots to fight for this cause. I think they will get a lot of support from the rest of us.