There is no sign of a upturn here in the UK and 2009 will undoubtedly be a 'Annus Horribilis'.
I was made redundant in December and I am lucky to get another flying job to see me through for a year or two but this is not in Europe. Only a handful of my former colleagues are flying again and most of them are flying out of Europe where the effects of the economic strain are felt to a lesser extent. The UK aviation industry is quite frankly... on its knees!
One former colleague of mine said that he was on the phone to one of the contract agencies recently. The lady at the other end of the phone said she even had a number of TRIs and TREs who were out of work and that any remaining opportunities are drying out quickly. This could be worse and more prolonged than 9/11! Sorry if this is not what you want to hear!