Djerba
I suspect that story has been triggered by the fact that HMRC have recently written to all "flying" ex-pats asking them to confirm their status so I'm not sure it's related to the subject of this thread.
I also suspect
that a lot of the ex-pats the Times is referring to, whilst perhaps working for UK airlines, simply don't live in the UK and therefore pay their tax elsewhere, there's a bit more to their claims of being non-resident than simply " the time they spend mid-air and in other time zones".
.... most have homes, bank accounts and even children in Britain
FWIW having any of those does not automatically disqualify you from being non-resident for tax purposes, it depends on the exact circumstances ( though to be fair using your
house in the UK as your own
home might just cause a few problems..).
That said there's no doubt HMRC is looking harder at everybody.