I think that there is an unfortunate pattern within the airline industry with peaks and slumps. There is also the fact that the airline industry is a very competitive marketplace and although it is sad, airlines like Zoom going bust is common place. I can name at least 5 airlines that have gone bust in the last few months.
Now all this sounds like bad news and the more I read these forums I get worried, I am about to undertake self-funded training and obviously I will be eager to get a job when I finish just to stop the bank from taking my organs as payment, but I think there is a silver lining to this cloud.
There have been a few conferences recently within Europe (and probably the rest of the world) about the shortage or pilots coming through the system, and how to solve this problem.
I don't think that this situation is as bad as 9/11 by any stretch, and I don't think there will ever be a day that Ryanair won't be recruiting purely because their pilot turnover is so great.