Am not fully up to speed on this, but did the cityflyer captains carry their commands across to BA? and do cityflyer pilots not have to go through the full application and selection process to get into mainline?
Not far off. The Cityflyer jet captains were allowed to retain 737 commands at LGW, although they had the same date of joining (and consequent seniority) as all the other Cityflyer pilots. For info, they were all given a specific agreed date of joining in order to fit into the master seniority list. Those who choose to remain at LGW on the 737 retain their commands and the appropriate pay. Those who choose to bid out to longhaul at LHR (for example) lose the command pay and are paid as per normal First Officers with that seniority. Some (ex-CFE) Captains were forced out of LGW onto longhaul as they were no longer required as Captains. Because they were forced out, they retain Captain's pay even though they fly as co-pilots, the only proviso being that they bid for all commands, irrespective of whether they achieve them. If they fail to bid for the commands, they lose the command pay.
Those joining BA from Cityflyer as a result of the takeover did not have to undergo any further selection.