There are three accountants, BRK have told them that they must charge 3%, there are alternatives for half this amount and pilots are getting paid and are still on the roster.
Its PAYE because the pilot is not self employed but instead is employed by an Irish Company, (all be it one that he owns himself)
Its been gone over a hundred times here that the scenario has been manufactured by FR & BRK to suit themselves. A chunk of full time pilots to cover the basics and then a few hundred contractors who can be taken off the roster at no cost to the airline when demand for flights is lower.
Its a good business model and if the pilots were free to use their own accountants would probably suit all those pilots flying for FR that do not live in Ireland and they could reduce their taxes with some decent tax advice.
However because BRK only care about BRK and not keeping their contractors happy. There see no incentive for them to help the pilots take home more pay.
Ironically they are missing a trick here. By allowing pilots to use more aggressive tax planning strategies they could keep the Irish tax office happy and at the same time have a happy bunch of contractors who are all taking home significantly more money that their full time employee colleagues.