WORLDTRAVELLERFLA as a former EA pilot I do not doubt that you suffered more than most. I fully accept that the demise of EA was a disaster for all concerned. However - and I absolutely agree in advance that I am not an expert - was it not the case that the failure of EA was due, in essence, to the machinists union being unwilling to accept the conditions being imposed by the owner (Frank Lorenzo)? The latter figure was a "venture capitalist" and specialist in asset stripping and I think it is fair to say that the word "compromise" or the expression "win-win situation" did not appear in his vocabulary. Indeed was he not subsequently found to be an "unfit" person to run another airline?
You paint a completely different picture and use it to imply that BA pilots are being unreasonable. While I am not a BA pilot, I have no doubt that they are facing an enormous challenge and that there is grave danger to the quality of their employment in the medium to long term. For that reason I support their action and I applaud their willingness to face the challenge head on.
I also am unaware of EA ever having a similar situation to that faced by the BA pilots (perhaps you could clarify this if you reply). You might also care to clarify what you mean when you refer to "corrupt union officials".
Finally, might it not be the case that the quality airline jobs to which you refer are only there because somebody was willing to defend them when the time came?