Dihaz, Mister Geezer, thank you for the replies and I guess to an extent I am just frustrated by my current situation, this time last year I was invited to six interviews (two I didn't attend due to already securing previous offers), had the choice of two jobs and nine months later find myself out of aviation employment with little immediate hope of getting another flying job.
However the silver lining is returning to contract work in my previous career now means in six to nine months I will hopefully clear all my debts from training. This does mean I am quite uncertain as to what to do next, I can't decide between working towards my MEI and IRI in six months time, or wait another 12 months and put the money towards a rating (ie: through Ryanair or Storm). Hence Dihaz, Mister Geezer, I would be keen to hear your advice on this. Bringing the thread back on context of Eastern, if you join Eastern is there any opportunity to opt for a specific base, or is it a case that everyone ends up at Aberdeen initially?