M.Mouse,
While agreeing with your sentiment I have to say your attitude is going to kill BA. I work for a charter airline (I know most BA pilots look down their noses at us) that does regular UK LCA UK flights and plenty of UK CALGARY flights.
LCA is quite a long day but not too bad, Calgary with two crew over the atlantic is a BREEZE!!!
BA needs to change and change fast or it will become another failed airline!
Last year for three months I could not do a full month's work because I had hit the annual rolling 900 hour total. I disagree that the duties you mention are 'not too bad' and a 'breeze'. In isolation they are. Flown regularly at the annual hours we, and no doubt you and most other UK operators, are flying cumulatively it is fatiguing which is why the pre-amble to CAP 371 states that the limits are absolute not to be considered targets or words to that effect.
If no airlines flew some of the ludicrously long duty days we would all be in the same boat and, therefore, nobody would have a competitive advantage on that score. What has happened is that all operators are forced to compete in a headlong race to the bottom. It has already been highlighted in the USA that fatigue is causing crashes. How long before we start seeing the same in the UK?
I will work as hard as BA require me to in order for the company to survive. It is not my attitude stopping that happening, I have no say over it and am already flying to the maximum I legally can, or very close to it. If less crew on fatiguing sectors is required I will fly them but please don't tell me it is sane or sensible to flog people to the limits.
I might add that I was not lucky enough to be sponsored nor be a career BA pilot. I was a DEP. I worked for a small outfit before BA. I have contemporaries working for Easyjet and Tui? (what was Brittania) and the last thing I, or indeed most of my colleagues, would be is so condescending as to look down our noses at fellow pilots all working damned hard to make a decent living. It is strange (and something I thought before joining BA) that BA pilots do appear to have an air of perceived arrogance. When I joined I was pleasantly surprised to find that they are 99% regular guys and most have a passion for flying like any other pilot working for any other airline.
I agree BA needs to change and change fast, the shame is that it is not just in the simple matter of pilot crewing levels alone where the change is needed.