In order for guys to understand what's going on here, and why BA are so determined to find type rated pilots, it is purely and simply as stated earlier in this thread:
Training Capacity!
As a result of the financial ills of the last 2-3 years, resulting in no recruitment, BA cut back markedly in the training departments. "No need yer see!"
Now the wheel has turned, the only game in town which provides the numbers of new joiners that BA is DESPERATE for, is short courses for folks who already have the type rating! They can't even train trainers at the same time, because they don't have the human resources!
So the problem is far more basic than the purely financial!
If the leader of the Red Arrows applied, or a Test Pilot/ Astronaut, without a TR, BA don't currently want to train him/her!
Will that change? Yes. But only when it is totally unavoidable.